“Maybe I just see through the façade,” she suggested. “I see you.”
“Dangerous is not a façade for a vampire,” he told her. “It’s reality.”
She shrugged. “Sometimes you just have to have faith in people.”
“Bullshit,” Kallias snarled, shocking her with his sudden change in tone. She heard movement, and she realized that he must have stood. She heard his footsteps moving back and forth in front of her, as if he were pacing. “Don’t you get it? Do you know what people see when they look at you? They see a weakness that they can exploit! You might as well be asking someone to hurt you!”
She raised an eyebrow. “I can see this is a sensitive topic for you.”
The sound of his footsteps stopped as he froze and glared at her. She heard him growl in frustration, and then, she heard a wooden crate scrape across the floor and thud as it hit the wall. She realized that he must have kicked it. She blinked in shock, waiting for him to say something to her, to yell at her or insult her, but his voice never came. She heard him breathing harshly, practically panting. “Bad tempers seem to be a common issue for vampires,” she muttered.
“Animalistic emotions,” Kallias said quietly.
The tired sadness that she heard in his voice surprised her. “Oh.”
“It’s…hard to control,” he muttered.
She stared silently into the darkness as she considered what it must feel like to be so out of control of your own emotions, so instinctually-driven.
Rose suddenly remembered her backpack.
“What’s wrong?” Kallias asked, noticing the worry in her expression.
She patted the floor around her, feeling for her bag. “My backpack.”
He didn’t respond. Rose assumed that meant that he didn’t know where it was. But then, something heavy suddenly dropped in her lap, startling her.
“You dropped it by the door,” Kallias told her, “when you fell.”
“Oh,” she said, running her hand across the bag. “Thanks.”
He stared down at her with a suspicious scowl. “What’s in it?”
“Uh,” she sputtered, “just my books and stuff.”
“Then, why did you bother hiding it from Theron?” he asked.
“I didn’t want anything to happen to them,” Rose answered. “I love my books, and I like carrying my favorites with me. Even when I can’t read them at the moment, I feel a little better just having them, you know. Because the stories are already here.” She pointed to her chest. “And looking at them reminds me.”
Still standing over her, Kallias just stared at her for a few moments.
She blushed. “It’s okay. You can call me a geek. Everyone else does.”
He frowned. “I have trouble staying up-to-date with human jargon, but it is my understanding that humans use the term geek to describe people who are passionate about something. I don’t think there is anything wrong with passion.”
Rose smiled shyly, surprised by his response.
She heard shuffling as Kallias sat down next to her again. She considered reaching her hand out to find out how far away he was from her, but the earlier incident of accidentally touching him had been embarrassing enough. He grunted in pain as he moved. “How is your wound? Is it healing yet?” she asked.
“Not yet,” he sighed. “It will heal before tomorrow night, I’m sure.”
“Theron was split open,” she said, frowning, “and he was still walking.”
“Theron feeds,” Kallias explained, “often. If I consumed as much blood as Theron does, then, I would have healed almost instantly. But I don’t.”
“So…just out of curiosity…” she mumbled, biting her lip nervously. “If you were to drink someone’s blood right now, would it kill the person?”
He laughed. “Why? Did you have someone in mind?”
Rose scowled. “No. I was just wondering.”
“Not necessarily,” he said in answer to her question.
His voice sounded closer now, nearly at her ear, meaning he must have leaned toward her. She felt his breath on her cheek, and she had the distinct feeling that he was staring at her neck. She swallowed. “What do you mean?”
“Well, most vampires do kill their victims, and Theron would have certainly killed you. But it is possible to feed from a human without killing them. It is the blood loss that kills you, ultimately. So, hypothetically speaking, I could feed from you and only take a little of your blood, and you’d survive,” he said.
She shivered as she felt his breath against her neck. “Hypothetically.”
He laughed, “Yes. Hypothetically.” He moved back, away from her.
She remembered how to breathe again once she no longer felt his body brushing against her. “So, then, why don’t all vampires just feed without killing?”
“It depends on the vampire,” Kallias said. Rose could almost hear the amusement in his voice as he watched her shift and squirm nervously. “Some vampires, like Theron, just enjoy the kill. We’re brutal, savage creatures. It’s in our nature to hunt and kill. Others kill by accident. The hunger is all-consuming. It is difficult to stop feeding once you’ve had a taste of the person’s blood. And then, there are the majority who kill out of convenience. We can’t exactly have humans walking around telling stories about a vampire that drank their blood.”
Rose shrugged. “People would just assume that they were crazy.”
“Until there’s too many of them saying the same thing,” Kallias said.
She frowned, considering that. “So, they just kill them, instead?”
“You sound so shocked,” he said bitterly. “We are monsters, after all.”
His use of the term we stunned her. “You think you are a monster?”
“I know I am,” Kallias muttered, as if it were just a simple fact. He sighed, “But honestly, most vampires just don’t see a way around killing humans. The hunger drives them to take too much blood, which forces them to choose between letting the human die or healing the human with their blood.”
“Healing?” Rose repeated, surprised. “What? Like what you did to me?”
“No,” he said. “I healed a minor wound on your neck. Your artery wasn’t severed, and he didn’t take much blood. If I had needed to heal you from something as serious as blood loss, I would have had to feed you my blood.”
She cringed. “That’s disgusting.”
He laughed. “Not to me.”
Rose scowled. “So, vampires can heal people, and yet, they don’t?”
“Feeding someone vampire blood creates a blood bond,” he explained.
She frowned at the confusing explanation. “Okay…but what is that?”
“An eternal link between the two people,” he said tiredly. He sounded distracted again, or perhaps just bored. “It is intensely intimate and invasive. And also very sexual. Most vampires wouldn’t feel that it was worth all of that.”
“Sexual?” she sputtered.
He looked at her and chuckled. “Yes, Rose. Sexual.”
“I don’t want a sexual bond with you,” she blurted.
Kallias stared at her, fighting the urge to laugh. “Good,” he said. “Because I don’t want an intimate bond with you. Or anyone else, for that matter.”
She blinked at that last part. It was obvious to her that someone had hurt him, violated his trust somehow, because why else would he have such a negative view of intimacy and trust? She wanted to ask, but she knew that was one question he’d never answer. “So, if vampires can heal from anything, how do you kill one?”
He snorted, “Should I be concerned?”
“Only if you make me very angry,” she teased.
He laughed. “Well, you already know that sunlight kills us,” he began.
“And beheading,” Rose added.
Kallias glanced at her in surprise. “How did you know that?”
“It was the only thing that seemed to scare Theron,” she explained.
He nodded. “Our regener
ative abilities only go so far. We can’t just regrow our heads. So, yes, beheading is the most practical way to kill a vampire.”
“I’m not sure the words beheading and practical belong in the same sentence,” she muttered under her breath. “So, what about wooden stakes?”
Kallias rolled his eyes. “You watch too much television.”
“I barely watch any television, actually,” she said. “TV is bad for the brain.”
He snorted. “Is that so?”
She winced and mumbled, “I also…kind of…don’t have room for one.”
He laughed, “I figured that’s what it really was.”
“I refuse to get rid of my bookshelves for a stupid TV,” Rose muttered, as if she’d argued about it a billion times, and Kallias figured she probably had.
“So, your books are what gave you these ridiculous ideas?” he asked.
She glared at him, or in his direction, at least. “Maybe.”
“Do you really think that fiction and superstitious myth are the best things to consult for suggestions on how to kill real monsters?” he asked.
Her eyes narrowed at his condescending tone. “Well, I tried to find a non-fiction, non-superstitious-myth book, but shockingly, it didn’t exist. Because, get this! Vampires are mythological creatures! Well, you’re supposed to be, anyway.”
A smile curved at the edges of his lips. “You should really calm down. Your heart is racing, and your cheeks are flushed. Vampires find that…enticing.”
Her eyes widened. “You better keep your fangs to yourself, mister.”
Kallias leaned back, grinning at her. “What about my hands?”
She blushed. “Those, too.”
He laughed. “To answer your question, whether or not a stake is made of wood is irrelevant. Vampires don’t have a magical allergy to wood,” he scoffed.
“What about silver?” Rose asked curiously.
Kallias frowned. “I thought that myth was about werewolves.”
Her eyes widened. “Werewolves exist, too?”
He scowled at her, even though he knew she couldn’t see him. “Am I supposed to be some kind of all-knowing source on supernatural creatures?”
“Is that your arrogant way of telling me you don’t know?” she countered.
Kallias sighed irritably. “If werewolves do exist, I have never met one.”
“So, would any kind of stake kill a vampire?” Rose asked impatiently.
He shrugged. “Have you ever seen a stake?” he asked tiredly. “Do you know how wide those things were? If you shove that into anything’s chest, and it gets up and walks away afterward…well…that would be some scary shit.”
“Then, I could kill a vampire by staking him?” she asked hopefully.
He rolled his eyes. “You’d never even get close enough to do it. Humans are not fast enough or strong enough to shove a stake into a vampire’s heart.”
She pursed her lips. “Then how does a human kill a vampire?”
“A human doesn’t,” he said. “We’re too powerful to be killed by humans.”
Rose sighed, “But surely there is some way…”
“Oh, how human of you,” Kallias muttered in a tone that made it clear he didn’t mean that as a compliment. “You all want to believe that there is some way to fight back, some way to defeat the monsters. Your scariest horror tales don’t even scratch the surface of how scary vampires really are. Humans wouldn’t be able to sleep at night if they knew the truth about what lurks in the darkness. We are the ultimate predators, and we are immortal. Humans stand no chance.”
She listened to him quietly. There was an edge to his voice, a cynicism. She could tell that he hated what he was. That hatred seeped into every word he said. “So, what you’re saying is,” she sighed, “that I have to depend on you?”
He glanced at her. “That bothers you, doesn’t it?”
“I never depend on anyone,” she stated. “It’s not who I am.”
Kallias sighed, “I’m afraid you don’t have a choice, sweetheart.”
“I do have a choice,” she argued. “I, unlike you, can leave right now.”
“And go where?” he asked. “Theron has probably taken shelter at your apartment for the day, assuming that you would come home. He may be lying in wait for you right now. Nowhere else in this town is safe for you either, not even during the day, because Theron has no problem with coercing humans into doing his bidding. The moment you set foot out of this building alone, he could have humans come and kidnap you and take you to him. I understand that this is an unfortunate situation for you, but you need to understand that you are in danger.”
Her eyes narrowed. “You can’t keep me here against my will.”
“I can, actually,” Kallias snarled.
“Excuse me?” she snapped. “I am not your prisoner!”
“I didn’t say you were, now did I?” he asked bitterly. “I was simply correcting you. Technically, I am capable of keeping you here against your will.”
“So I can leave right now, if I want?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.
“That would be extremely foolish,” he said between clenched teeth.
“But I can. Right?” she prompted again, her eyes narrowed.
“I told you I would keep you safe,” Kallias said, frowning at her. “If you leave, I can’t do that. Your only chance of survival is to stay with me until we kill Theron. If you value your life, you will stay here and leave with me at nightfall.”
“To go where, exactly?” Rose snapped. “And for how long?”
“None of that matters,” he said dismissively.
“Yes, it does!” she argued. “I don’t know what life is like for vampires, but humans have responsibilities. We can’t just leave all of that behind!”
“Your responsibilities will mean nothing if you’re dead,” Kallias said.
“But if I live, I will have bills to pay,” she insisted.
“Damn it, Rose, I can take care of all of that! You have no idea what kind of power I have!” he growled. “But I am not leaving you here to die.”
“What are you going to do?” she snarled. “Kidnap me?”
“Maybe,” he said in an equally acidic tone. “If that’s what it takes.”
Her eyes widened. “Do you have any idea how wrong that is?”
“I’m a vampire, baby,” he said darkly. His voice dripped with bitterness and cynicism. “It shouldn’t surprise you that I would do something that’s wrong.”
She shook her head. “I never asked for your protection, and I refuse to let you tell me what to do or force me to do anything!” She jumped to her feet.
Kallias frowned as he watched Rose attempt to leave. She picked the right direction, at least, but she walked directly into a stack of crates and fell backward. The stack of crates collapsed onto her, and then another stack of boxes wobbled and fell on top of her as well. She whimpered as the crates and boxes buried her. Kallias sighed as he watched her try to push the crates off of herself. Rolling his eyes, he stood and walked over to her, kicking boxes out of his way.
Rose couldn’t see anything in the dark building, so she had no idea how many boxes and crates were on top of her at this point. She knew they felt too heavy, covering her chest, arms, and legs. She could barely breathe, much less move, but she shoved at the crates anyway, wincing at the pain it caused her.
She froze as she heard shuffling noises all around her. Then, slowly, she felt the weight being lifted off of her. She inhaled deeply, relieved that she could breathe again, and then tried to sit up. She gasped as Kallias’s arms suddenly slid beneath her legs and back. He lifted her and cradled her against his bare chest, and then, he carried her several steps forward before he set her on her feet.
“I should have just left you there,” Kallias muttered bitterly.
Rose couldn’t help but notice that despite the anger in his voice, his touch had been surprisingly gentle. “Why didn’t you?” she asked quietly.
; “I don’t know,” he said. “The door is behind you, if you want to leave.”
She heard his footsteps moving in the opposite direction. She blinked in surprise as she realized he’d actually left her at the door. She sighed and reached out in the direction she’d his footsteps. Then, she tentatively stepped forward.
His footsteps stopped. “The door is the other way, sweetheart.”
“I don’t want the door. I want you,” Rose said, slowly following his voice.
Kallias frowned at her. He sighed as he saw her nearing another stack of crates. “Just…stand still,” he muttered. “I will come to you. Please. Don’t move.”
She froze. The warmth of his body closed around her before he spoke.
He took her hands into his and led them to his chest. “I’m here.”
“You’re a jerk,” Rose said, absently tracing the lines of his chest.
He inhaled sharply at her touch. “You called me over here to say that?”
“No,” she said. Her fingertip brushed over a raised portion of skin…a scar, she thought…but he suddenly grasped her hands and pulled them away. She frowned curiously at that. “I called you over here because I want to apologize.”
His brows furrowed. “For what?”
“For giving you a hard time,” she said. “You’re a total jerk, and you apparently don’t know how to talk to someone without ordering them around. But…I can see that you’re trying to help and that you care, even if you do have a screwed up way of showing it. So, I am sorry if I overreacted just now.”
Kallias stared down at her, completely stunned by the apology. He studied her dilated azure eyes. “It’s fine,” he mumbled. “Stop apologizing.”
She reached out and touched him again, her fingers tracing the lines of his tattoo, even though she couldn’t see it. His hands remained on her wrists, but he didn’t stop her this time. Instead, he closed his eyes and leaned into her, his breath coming harsher and quicker. “Will you forgive me?” she asked softly.
“Stop apologizing,” he breathed again.
She frowned at him. “Why?”
“I don’t know how to respond,” he said.
Her brows furrowed. “To an apology?” she laughed.
“No,” Kallias said. “To kindness.”
The Stone of the Eklektos Page 26