Kiss of the Vampire

by Terry Spear

  “As long as you promise to rescue me if I get in over my head.”

  “Absolutely.” She tried to tamp down the edginess that threatened to unravel her resolve. Wading deeper, she watched for any signs of fins.

  When she was waist deep, she stopped, trying to bolster her waning courage.

  “Did you want to go any farther?” Levka asked.

  She nodded and headed farther out.

  When she was up to her neck in the warm water, the tide reached Levka’s chest, and he pulled her close. She wanted to pretend the ocean didn’t terrify her, that she could manage this all on her own, but the longer she stood there unable to see what was all around her, the more her fear got the best of her.

  Tamping down her panic, she tried to reason with herself, but Levka’s next words made her realize she just couldn’t push her recovery any faster.

  “You’re trembling. Are you cold?”

  “I’m ready to go back in,” she said, disappointed in herself. Did Levka realize she wasn’t cold? She hoped not, the water and air were warm.

  She cried out when she saw a silvery fish with a torpedo-shaped body and dagger-like teeth. “A tiger of the sea!”

  “What?”

  “Barracuda and their jagged teeth can rip your skin to shreds.” She grabbed Levka’s hand and tried to rush into shore, but the wall of warm, salty water she pressed against slowed her retreat. She glanced back to see the barracuda following them.

  The water tugged at their legs, and the sand sifted beneath their feet, impeding their movement. Small waves pushed them toward the shore, then the tide pulled them back out, as Caitlin’s heart picked up its pace

  But he suddenly lifted her out of the water and seemed to move so quickly it was a blur. Squinting her eyes, she wondered if she’d had too much sun. She cleared her throat, tasting of fishy seawater. “Here I was mad at you about Petroski. You’re such a hero in my eyes. Did you know?” she said softly.

  He smiled down at her, his dark eyes sexy and intriguing. “You’re the only one for me.”

  When they reached the beach, he still held her tightly.

  She smiled. “I can walk now, and thanks.”

  He set her down and they looked back at the water, but there was no sign of the barracuda.

  She shook the sand from her shorts and pulled them on. “And here I thought I was about ready to go back in the ocean.”

  When they returned to the ship, it was time to depart and Caitlin and Levka headed back to their rooms to change into something dry. Afterward, they planned on having lunch. But for now, Caitlin stared at the tons of gift bags sitting on Alicia’s bed.

  Caitlin looked in one. A gold necklace. In another, a pair of gold earrings. A gold watch, gold bracelets, and a gold nose ring filled the other sacks. What did Alicia do? Buy out the store? Examining the receipts, she found Alicia had spent over a thousand dollars.

  Shaking her head, Caitlin hurried to get a shower before the gold princess returned and took over the bathroom.

  ***

  After Ruric called to Levka with some concern, he met him on the upper deck.

  “Levka, I’ve heard more from the teens who intend to cause trouble aboard ship. They repeated they want to delay its return somehow so their spring break is extended.”

  “But you don’t know how they intend to do this?”

  “No. I believe they’re still in a quandary as to how to accomplish their plan.”

  “We must find them before they try anything.”

  Just as the words were out of his mouth, two explosions rocked the ship’s stern, the blast deafening. Plumes of black smoke billowed out the back end.

  “This is the captain speaking. All passengers and crew to the lifeboats! Abandon ship! The ship is on fire!” boomed a voice over the public address system.

  Confusion and panic immediately seized the passengers. Some headed for their lifeboat stations, donning lifejackets. Others hurried to the lifeboat stations without their lifejackets. Meanwhile, crew members tried to maintain calm.

  “The pranksters,” Ruric warned Levka. “It’s the same voice I heard speaking before.”

  “Maybe so, but the ship is on fire.” Levka headed toward Caitlin’s stateroom. “Find the others and meet us at our lifeboat station. We’ll make plans from there.”

  “Right.” Ruric stalked off toward the ship’s bow.

  A girl screamed near the boat’s stern and Levka whipped around to see, Amie, one of the Georgia girls they’d dined with, wearing her lifejacket. Her broom skirt had caught fire as the wind whipped the flames over the deck. Her face was white with terror as she screamed again. Before he could reach her, she climbed over the railing and jumped.

  Without thinking, Levka vanished, reappearing beneath her over the ocean and caught her before she impacted with the water. Dropping into the ocean to douse the flames, the realization he couldn’t swim came too late. Amie flailed her arms in the water, sobbing and screaming, but her lifejacket kept them afloat.

  “Are you burned?” he asked, trying to calm her. She was too hysterical to respond coherently, and her flailing threatened to drown them both. “Amie, look at me,” he said. “You’re floating in a pool, enjoying a lazy day on your spring vacation. Relax and enjoy.”

  Levka wished he could allay his fears as well. Amie grew still in his arms and floated in the slight swells of the water.

  “Turn the ship around!” Levka commanded his friends. “Two of us are in the water. Amie, one of the girls from Georgia, is burned, but I can’t learn the extent of her injuries. And someone make sure Caitlin gets to a lifeboat.”

  “At once, Levka. Can you manage?” Ruric asked.

  Levka held tight to the girl. “Amie is wearing a lifejacket.”

  “I’ll go for Caitlin,” Arman said.

  “Ruric and I will get the captain to turn the ship around,” Stasio said.

  ***

  “Levka, where are you?” Caitlin asked, grabbing her own lifejacket and Alicia’s, her heart racing. She couldn’t believe the announcement the ship was on fire and they had to abandon it, but the blast had to be the cause. “I’m getting my lifejacket, but I don’t know where Alicia is.”

  “I’m coming for you,” Arman assured her.

  “Where’s Levka?” she asked, grabbing her purse.

  “Helping a girl in need, as usual,” Arman said, his voice dark.

  “Good. Do you want me to wait for you here or…”

  Someone knocked on the door, and she rushed to get it.

  “Caitlin?” Arman asked.

  She yanked the door open, expecting to see Arman. Vlad gave her a wicked grin, shoved her into the room, and slammed the door. “Going somewhere?”

  “The captain said go to our lifeboat stations. I’ve got to find Alicia. Why don’t you have your lifejacket on?”

  The menacing look in Vlad’s fathomless ebony eyes exuded pure evil. He walked toward her. She backed away from him, until she bumped into the balcony door.

  “Open it.”

  She glared at him. “We have to go! The ship’s on fire. Didn’t you hear?”

  He grabbed the doorknob behind her, twisted, and pushed her onto the patio.

  “Déjà vu.”

  “Listen, Vlad, for a year I didn’t hear from you. I’ve got other friends now who are a heck of a lot more loyal than you ever were. The only reason I think you’re even interested in me is because Levka is. So give it up, will you?”

  Vlad jerked the lifejackets from her hands and dropped them onto the patio floor.

  “Vlad, listen to me. We have to leave!”

  Tilting his head to the side, Vlad listened. “They’re turning the ship around. Probably to return to port. But you will be mine before then.” He grabbed her shoulders and pressed her against the railing.

  “Quit it, Vlad!”

  He gave her a small smile. “I told you we’re vampires. Levka wants you, but he can’t have you. My league has already approved
my having you. Levka’s league hasn’t. You know the old saying, ‘the early bird gets the worm.’” Then his smile broadened, and he showed her a pair of wickedly white canines.

  “They’re…they’re fake,” she said, hoping to God Arman would hurry and get to her. Vlad was certifiable.

  “Of course they are, love, if it makes you feel more comfortable.” And then he sank the fake teeth into her neck.

  She screamed out when the sharp fangs penetrated her skin and sank into her vein. His hands pressed against her shoulders, attempting to hold her still.

  “Don’t struggle, Caitlin. It will only hurt if you fight me.”

  She tried to kick him and to hit him with her fists, but her strength was dwindling as she felt him sucking the blood from her neck, draining her of energy.

  “That’s right. Nice and quiet, Caitlin. I’m nearly finished.”

  She didn’t want to obey him, but she couldn’t thrash about anymore, her muscles were so unresponsive. Then out of the corner of her eye, she saw Arman and vaguely wondered how he got into her stateroom without a key. He didn’t rescue her, didn’t shove Vlad aside, but instead grabbed up the lifejackets.

  He wouldn’t lift a hand to save a mortal, she thought as her mind drifted into a dark haze.

  ***

  Levka couldn’t believe it when he saw Arman flying above the ocean with Caitlin in his arms, limp and unresponsive. He was supposed to get her to a lifeboat, not put her life in further peril!

  “What is going on, Arman?” Levka asked, still clinging to Amie, held afloat by her lifejacket.

  “I had no choice, Levka. Vlad got to her.”

  Levka’s heart nearly stilled. “What’s happened?”

  “He’s taken too much of her blood. I had to save her from him. It was either bring her to you, or let him have her.”

  Arman dropped into the water beside Levka with Caitlin still secure in his arms and shoved one of the lifejackets to him.

  “If I take her without their permission, the league will kill both of us,” Levka said.

  “Very possibly, but what a noble way to die, eh?” Arman wrinkled his nose. “Did I ever tell you how much I fear the water?”

  Levka put on the lifejacket, then took Caitlin in his arms while Arman held onto Amie. “I won’t tell the others you’re afraid of the water.” Levka bit into his own arm and offered his blood to Caitlin’s lips. “Drink, sweet angel,” he coaxed her.

  Caitlin’s eyelids fluttered, but she didn’t react any more than that.

  Arman turned his head. “The ship’s returning.”

  “Thank God for small miracles.” Levka tried again. “Caitlin, drink my blood, and stay with me.” Levka looked up at Arman. “Does she realize what we are now?”

  “Vlad told her what we all are and showed her his teeth right before he sank them into her neck. She didn’t have a chance.”

  “I’ll kill him,” Levka hissed.

  “His league will sign his death warrant for taking her by force as soon as we report him.” Arman touched Caitlin’s wrist. “She’s slipping away.”

  “I know it. I can’t control her mind to make her drink.”

  “Maybe it’s like Petroski said. It’s better to take a mate we can control.”

  “Caitlin, you know what we are. If you choose not to be one of us, so be it. I lost a girl I loved dearly a very long time ago. If you die, I will sink to the bottom of the ocean and die with you.”

  “Subtle, Levka. No pressure. Let her decide for herself?” Arman gritted his teeth. “There’s a shark headed our way. Your arm is dripping blood into the water.”

  “If…if…we…were…” Caitlin said, her words so soft, he could barely hear them. “…on…on land…I could…” She swallowed hard. “I…could…help.”

  She wasn’t making any sense. Had to be the blood loss.

  Levka’s blood chilled as the gray dorsal fin headed in their direction. “Make him think we’re dolphins ready to kick his butt.”

  “Give me all the tough jobs, will you?”

  “It’ll keep your mind off being in the water.”

  Caitlin licked some of the blood dripping from Levka’s wound onto her lips. He shifted his attention to her. “Caitlin, will you be mine?”

  Her eyelids fluttered open this time. “Vlad…” Her eyes shut again, and his heart sank.

  “Drink my blood, and you will be safe from Vlad.” Levka tried to drip the blood into her mouth, but managed to get more of it in the water.

  Arman shook his head. “Can you keep the blood out of the water, Levka?”

  Caitlin’s hand touched Levka’s waist. He tried to encourage her to drink from his arm again, but she turned her head away.

  “She doesn’t want our way of life, Levka. Give it up.” Arman shifted his concentration back to the shark. “He’s gone under.”

  “Is what Arman says true? You want no part of our life?” Levka asked her, praying it wasn’t so. He’d do anything to make her his, yet he couldn’t force her even if he wanted to.

  “Where…where…are…we?”

  As weak as she was, he could hear her heartbeat quicken, felt the panic in her blood. He hesitated to say, afraid she’d be paralyzed with fear if she learned she was in the ocean again. With a shark somewhere nearby.

  “In the Atlantic,” Arman said. “But we’re with you this time, and you have nothing to fear.”

  “Thanks, Arman. Why don’t you tell her about the shark again while you’re at it? She doesn’t seem totally aware of her surroundings. As weak as she is, it would be ideal if she doesn’t have to worry about little niceties like that.”

  “Kiss…,” she said, then swallowed hard.

  “I think she means you, Levka,” Arman said. “The shark’s circling.”

  “Who isn’t being subtle, Arman?” Levka said privately to his friend. “Could you quit mentioning about the bloody shark?”

  “Sorry, but he’s really got my attention. I mean, I really don’t like water, but I like it even worse when a ten-foot-long shark’s swimming in it. I know I’ll heal if he takes a big chunk out of me, but the idea of the pain and suffering, the blood loss, the time it takes to heal, and keeping the whole thing quiet—”

  “Kiss me…,” Caitlin said, her telepathic voice weak but more urgent.

  “You are making this harder for me,” Levka responded and kissed her cold lips, certain that’s all she wanted, nothing more. He licked her dry lips and pressed his mouth against hers, wishing she’d want to join him, hoping he wasn’t making a mistake if she did want to be his.

  Her tongue touched his lips, and he closed his eyes and kissed her harder.

  “It’s coming in for a bite,” Arman warned.

  “If you can’t keep it from biting, let it get your leg. You will heal at least. But keep it away from Amie and Caitlin.”

  Levka leaned over to kiss Caitlin again, to give her what she wanted before he lost her forever. Though his dark heart wanted to force her to accept him. He didn’t want to lose her.

  Her lips parted slightly. “You…you…don’t…know…what…” She paused. “…I…am.”

  “My angel.”

  She shook her head slightly. “A…witch.”

  Arman suddenly splashed frantically at the water.

  Caitlin bit Levka’s lip hard. Searing pain went through his mouth. His first instinct was to pull away, but her hands grasped his arms, locking him in place. She moved her mouth toward his, her eyes bright and determined. Her tongue flicked at his bloodied lip.

  Arman kicked in the water again. “I hit it in the nose, but it’s circling again, not giving up.” He spoke to Ruric this time. “Ruric, make the ship go faster!”

  The shark’s dorsal fin skimmed the top of the water near Levka and Caitlin.

  “Remember to let it bite you and not the girls,” Arman said, sarcastically, “as you will heal from the wound just fine.”

  Caitlin reached up and pulled Levka’s face to hers, and suck
ed hard on his lip.

  “Oh boy, are you in trouble with the league now,” Arman said.

  He wrapped his arms around Caitlin in a fierce embrace. “You are mine.”

  Arman coughed and sputtered after swallowing a mouthful of saltwater. “The shark’s coming in for another attempt at a bite.”

  Levka felt the turbulence in the water, and the way Caitlin stiffened in his arms. But he offered her his wrist so she could have a greater dose of his blood. Trying to ignore the shark, he concentrated on the siren drinking her fill, the one who would be his for all eternity. If the league let them both live.

  After several seconds, he pulled her away from his arm, then licked the wound, sealing it.

  Her heartbeat was stronger, her pulse still slow though. She clung to him weakly.

  “What have we done?” she whispered, her eyes misty.

  “Levka will be your teacher and your protector,” Arman said, kicking at the shark’s short blunt snout. The shark twisted away. “You’re now a fledgling, and it’ll take some time to learn our ways. But then again, you have forever.”

  Caitlin’s grasp on Levka grew clingier. “What…what are we doing in the ocean?”

  He sensed her horror. “I went overboard to save a girl who’d jumped ship because her skirt was on fire. Do you remember Amie from lunch the other day?”

  Caitlin looked over at Amie, her long dark hair floating in the water. “Is…is she okay?”

  “Sleeping, but I don’t know how badly burned she is.” Levka gave Arman an annoyed look. “I hadn’t expected Arman to bring you out here to me.”

  Caitlin caught sight of the shark making another pass and closed her eyes tight. “Just hold onto me and never let go. I can endure anything if you’re with me.”

  Levka let out his breath. If he could get permission from the league to make her his after the fact, maybe all would be well. If they could first avoid the shark.

  The predator’s beady eyes sat forward on its broad nose, giving it a sinister appearance, but suddenly the jaws opened, revealing jagged, and serrated teeth close to Arman.

  “Bite it, Arman,” Levka shouted.

  “You bite it, Levka!” Arman yelled back at him.

  “Grab onto him and drain his blood!”