Tears of Blood (The Blood Chronicles)

by Tamela Quijas

  She heard him exhale heavily before he turned toward her, and she suspected that his expression was contrite.

  “Don’t worry yourself, Meghan.” He soothed although his voice quivered with the effort to keep the murderous tones at bay. “Declan loves to taunt me.”

  Meghan didn’t have an opportunity to say anything as a chill burst of air spun around her, and Declan’s voice whispered ominously into her ear.

  “He didn’t tell you what he is, did he?” The man scorned mystically, his frozen breath caressing her cheek. Startled, she jerked about, confused by Amado’s howl of rage. Just as swiftly as Declan had appeared at her side, he vanished, his jeering laugh filling the room.

  “Leave her!” Amado shouted and his cold hands reach for her, pulling her close to his chest and wrapping about her body.

  “You didn’t tell her, did you?”

  Declan’s voice had become a melodious echo that bounced from the rafters. Warily, Meghan turned her head, uncertain as she listened to the man repeat the question repeatedly.

  “What were you supposed to tell me, Amado?” She inquired hesitantly, not certain she’d care for his response. He exhaled heavily and, for once, she heard his walk toward her.

  “I’m not what I seem,” he supplied uneasily, his fingers lifting her chin upwards.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Tell her, Gianni,” Declan’s voice continued to dare, each syllable a rough grate on her nerves. “Tell her of the demon in your soul.”

  “Demon?”

  “Meghan,” her name was a painful exhalation, his breath warm. “I am…”

  “I grow weary of the hesitance,” Declan interrupted in a tone resembling a petulant child. Another chilling breeze blasted past her, and Meghan shuddered uneasily. She stepped away from Amado, his hands falling as he allowed her the freedom she desired. “Tell her, before I take matters feast on her luscious flesh!

  Amado’s hand shot out and knocked her to the floor, her pained cry muffled by the horrendous roar that shook the building. Startled, Meghan’s head jerked about as she heard the impact of body against body, Declan’s angry shout echoed by Amado’s enraged denial.

  “Stop!” She yelled as she rose, wiping her hands across the seat of her jeans. “Both of you need to stop this foolishness!”

  Her command went unnoticed and the sound of ferocious snarl and the smell of spilled blood surrounded her. Frightened tears filled her eyes and she twisted around in a circle, the telltale resonance of battling men reverberating loudly in her ears.

  She gulped in a deep breath of air before issuing a high-pitched scream.

  Her action produced the desired effect. Silence drifted around her and the icy draft filling the studio came to a chilling halt. Meghan raked her hands through her hair and shuddered, horrid reflections and images dancing in her imagination.

  “Amado?” A heavy hush greeted her. Meghan waited, wondering if he were injured, and her hand rose to her throat. “Please, Amado, are you there?”

  “I am.” His weak voice came to her from across a distance.

  “Declan?”

  “I’m here, as well,” he responded broodingly. “Although, I suspect my ears are a bit worse for wear.”

  She scowled, not finding his quip very amusing. She exhaled a quivering breath, but remained where she stood, frowning.

  “What was I supposed to know?” She braved.

  “Darling,” Declan’s falsely suave voice interjected, not allowing Amado to speak. “Your lover forgot to mention the story of his past.”

  She wondered why the man was so irritatingly abrasive. Folding her arms, her features hardened and she hoped she managed a convincing glare.

  “Amado?”

  “Si, bella?”

  “Are you a married man?” She demanded abruptly.

  He snorted, but the action sounded pained. “No.”

  “Have you ever been married?”

  “I was, once, a very long time ago.” He admitted roughly.

  “Is there another woman?”

  “There hasn’t been a woman in my life for more years than I care to count.”

  “Oh,” she digested his response accordingly. Suddenly, she recalled the one question he’d surprised her with when asking about her friend. “Is there a man in your life?”

  She listened to him choke in outrage before smugly lifting her chin.

  “I think I’ve heard all I need to know, Declan.”

  “I don’t think you have, darling.” He responded coolly. “You haven’t asked the most important question of all.”

  What would that be?”

  “You haven’t asked him if he happens to be alive.”

  Declan’s ironically posed question caused her to shake her head, uncertain that she heard him correctly.

  “What do you mean?” Frowning, she considered the impossibility.

  “Precisely what I said, Meghan Stanley,” Declan continued, ignoring the low throated growl slipping rumbling in the room.

  “Alive?” She turned in Amado’s direction, inquisitiveness written clearly on her face. “What’s he talking about, Amado?”

  The air felt heavy as her question was met with silence. Before she could think, before she’d time to realize where he stood, Amado was directly before her. She gasped and blinked, his aroma filling her senses.

  “What’s going on, Amado?” She demanded breathlessly. “Why would Declan say such a thing?”

  “Meghan,” his voice was somber, the normal laughing lilt having vanished. “Do you recall when I asked for permission to enter your home?”

  She nodded and frowned.

  “Your exact question to me was ‘You sound like some friggin’ bloody vampire!’. Do you remember?”

  “Of course I do.” She remarked bitterly, her brow furrowing as she recalled the events of the morning.

  “Meghan,” his voice became intense. “I am precisely that, a vampire.”

  “Who are you kidding?” She stifled a hysterical laugh, shaking her head. “Is this some sort of joke?”

  “I’m not joking.” His response was solemn. “I’m one of those creatures I warned you about the night of the book signing.”

  Laughing, tears streamed down her cheeks.

  “You’re so full of shit!” Meghan stated ungraciously, spinning about and walking unerringly toward the large windows. “I’ve been with you and spent a night in your arms. I know you’re human…”

  “You’re misinformed.” Declan’s irritatingly smooth voice interrupted. “I can assure you he’s exactly what he says he is.”

  “Oh? Are you in on this grand scheme, too?” She turned in his direction, her face reflecting her disbelief. “Are the two of you constructing some horrid little game of let’s-play-a-prank-on-the-blind-girl?”

  Amado exhaled and the breath sounded practically shivery, as if he shook his head when he performed the action.

  “This isn’t a game,” he assured her and another subtle breeze ripple past her. Miraculously, he stood by her side, having crossed the expanse of the studio with a speed she couldn’t rationalize. “I’m telling you the truth.”

  “What do you think I am?” She inquired sarcastically. “Do you think I’m some starry eyed teenager that’s going to clutch my heart and swoon because you made this ridiculous admission? In case you’ve forgotten, I’m well beyond the age of adoring adolescents and I know vampires don’t exist!”

  “Meghan,” he interjected patiently. “I know this is a lot for you to comprehend, but I’d never lie to you.”

  She smirked, snorting as she did so.

  “I don’t know why I ever listened to Chesca.” She ground out irritably. “I allowed her to make me believe you were special, that you were the one man I could allow into my life.”

  “Here you are, spinning some outrageous tale you expect me to accept, and leading me around like I’m some friggin’ moron, all because I fell in love with you…”

  Abruptly, Am
ado grasped her hand. He pressed a tender kiss to her knuckles before placing his cheek against her balled fist. She felt the dampness that weighed profoundly on his cheek and the coldness of his flesh. Meghan exhaled heavily, angry beyond words.

  “Then love me.” He whispered tenderly. “Love me despite my curse. Love me for who I am in this era. Love me because you feel it in your heart.”

  “Stop being so pitiful, Gianni!” Declan shouted and Meghan could perceive the rage in his voice, as well as the hint of another emotion deep beneath. “She’s mortal, human to the disgusting core. What do you imagine she’d ever see in a creature such as yourself?”

  “A future.”

  “There’s no such thing as a future with a mortal!” Declan persisted with a sly laugh.

  Silent, Amado ached with a pain he thought forgotten.

  “Is any of this true?” Meghan asked hesitantly, remaining where she stood.

  “Meghan, you’ve learned to rely on your other senses,” Amado began insistently. “I suspect you left this morning because there were a few things about me you couldn’t rationalize.”

  She pulled her hand aware from him, stepping back, and shaking her head. His words reverberated in her mind, a taunting echo of every thought that had tugged at her. There had been certain issues, one she couldn’t pinpoint, that worried her, but never drifted to the forefront of her imagination.

  Not speaking a word, Amado reached for her and she realized he radiated with an unnatural coldness that had nothing to do with the weather. She allowed him to place her hand in the area where she knew his heart to be, and he pressed his forehead to her furrowed brow.

  “Tell me, cara, what do you feel?”

  Closing her eyes, she waited. Beneath her fingertips, there wasn’t the betraying thud of the organ proclaiming him as one of the living. Instead, only stillness greeted her. Her fingers curled into the fabric of his shirt, clutching at the material as she exhaled a shuddering wisp of breath.

  “I don’t understand…” she began.

  “I’m a demon that hunts among the breathing, a shadow of the man I once was,” he murmured throatily.

  “What you’re saying is unreal…” She managed uneasily.

  “I know, Meghan.” His response resounded with pain. “I realize this is a difficult subject for you to accept, that it is too hard for you to believe.”

  “It’s more than that, Amado.” She yanked her hand free, her exhalation of breath a shuddering gasp. “I don’t know what to think, or what I should tell myself about you.”

  “Tell me,” he didn’t move, afraid to step any closer and sending her into a panic. “Do you feel I would harm you?”

  Mulling over his words, the gears of her mind worked at a speed that made her head ache, and she couldn’t speak.

  “All I know is how I feel about you, if you’ll accept what I am; love me for the man who still lingers inside…”

  “You’re wasting your time!”

  She lifted her head and opened her lids, the clouded regard flashing fire. Her heart swelled and she ground her teeth together, wondering if she were making the biggest mistake of her life, before she spoke.

  “If this is all true, Amado,” she began in a clear, strong voice. “If you love me…”

  “There isn’t an if in the love I feel for you, Meghan.” He interrupted fervently. “I love you, as much as any living man could. Perhaps, I love you even more than mortally possible.”

  “Why?” She ran a hand through her hair before tossing the thick swathe over her shoulder. “I’m only human. I can’t even look at you, Amado, nor can I offer you a life that you could adapt. You do realize that I age and, one year, I’ll die.”

  “Until that time, I wish to spend every second, every moment at your side.” His words were painfully poignant. “I will never tire of telling you how much I love you, Meghan.”

  She pressed her cheek into the palm of his hand, her heart swelling. She knew how she felt, how his very touch made her weak, and a passionate longing seeped from soul. Despite the absurdity of his claims, and the undeniable proof that he presented, Meghan understood what her heart whispered.

  “I love you, Amado,” she managed as a whoosh of frigid air filled the room and Declan vanished in a fit of pique.

  ***

  “You can’t mean what you say.” Amado interrupted, amazement echoing in every word.

  “Why can’t I?”

  “I’m not good for you, and should leave you to your mortal world.”

  “You want me to love you, and then you tell me to leave you alone.” She breathed irritably. “Make up your mind, Amado. You either want one, or the other.”

  “I want you!” He nearly shouted aloud. “I want you, but I can hear the blood flowing through your veins.”

  “Should I be afraid?” She asked, quirking a single brow in his direction.

  “You’ll never have to fear me.” Amado’s words were thick and filled with pain.

  “Then,” her chin lifted and she glared at him with defiant but sightless eyes. “What’s stopping you?”

  “Meghan, there's a demon inside of me.”

  “I don't believe you.”

  “Perhaps it’s best if you run, avoid me, and hide.” He inclined his head, the warm breath brushing her face. Incapable of moving, she hummed at his nearness, his presence overwhelming. Her lids lowered, heavy with desire as his fingertips traced the burgeoning tip of her nipple. She gasped aloud, arching toward him as stepped back, her body seeking the promise of his touch. “I’m the evil you don’t need in your innocent life.”

  “That’s for me to decide,” she whispered. “My life isn’t innocent, and never has been, Amado. All I know is I love you, and I want to be a part of your world.”

  “You don’t understand.” He argued gently, his warm breath caressing her upturned features. “I exist in a society filled with monsters…”

  “We all do,” she countered. “Whether human or unexplained, there are monsters at every level in our life.”

  “You can’t choose…”

  She pressed her cheek to his and closed her eyes. Her hands traced the region of his heart, lingering on the spot where his heartbeat should have been, before lifting and resting on his shoulders.

  “I choose you.” Meghan breathed in an adoring voice.

  For a moment, he wondered if what he heard was a figment of his imagination. Amado shook himself, marveling if Declan’s curse had been blessing in disguise, allowing him the time to find the woman who held his soul captive. Disbelief marred his handsome features as he pressed his cheek close to hers, and his hands slid slowly over her.

  “You don’t know what you want…”

  She shook her head before resting her forehead on his shoulder.

  “Since I lost my sight, I’ve been overly careful with my life.” Meghan admitted breathily. “I’ve turned my back on anything that brought joy, and haven’t allowed my heart to rule my brain. Over the last few days, and after a little talk I had with Chesca, I realized what I was missing.”

  “What are you missing?”

  Bitterness tinged her response.

  “I’ve allowed my past to dictate my future, and I’ve suffered because of it. I’m not going to become nothing more than a shadow in this world, going back and forth to work every day, or hiding in my home. I want to embrace everything! I want to reach for the stars, and I want to stay in your arms…”

  “I can offer you nothing but my love, Meghan.” He murmured as he pressed his lips to her brow.

  “I don’t ask for anything else.” She reassured him, her heart swelling.

  She melded firmly into him, her pliant form sinking into his hardness. Issuing a softly betraying breath, his quivering hands slid over her, lingering on the supine curve of her spin before resting on her slender hips. His warm lips moved across her jaw line, before sliding to her neck, and trailing across the pale flesh of her shoulder. A gasp of unbridled passion escaped her, and Meg
han rose to the tops of her toes, her senses alive, and an unexplained fire burning deep within her soul as she clutched at him.

  “Take me from the cold, Luce mia.” He whispered deeply. “Take me from this world and lead me into a realm of starlight. I want to feel you, burn for you…”

  His words were filled with a plea that pulled at her heart, and she gently drew his lips to hers. Her features radiated with tender and loving warmth, fully apparent to his searching gaze, before she captured his mouth in a mind-searing kiss. Amado shuddered at the contract, realizing she held more power over him than he’d ever experienced in all the years of his existence, and his mind reeled as he clutched her close.

  Meghan was his light, his star in the night, and his angel.

  Her hands rose to his chest and the pressure of her small fingers was electric against his chilled skin, sending rippling shocks through his body. Amado could detect her thudding heartbeat in his ears, each thud a heady pulsation of excited blood, secretly pleading for his touch.

  Amazed by the wealth of emotions radiating from her slim form, he quivered beneath her touch. She drew out the best in him, made him what he always long to become, and gave to him with unselfish love. He loved her with every fiber of his being, and was willing to risk eternity to remain at her side.

  The soft issuance of her breath wafted across his skin as he lifted her into his arms, gently placing her on the satin sheets of his bed. Her golden hair fanned about her head, stark brightness against the darkness, starlight rivaling the murkiness within his accursed soul.