Conversion Book Three: 'Til Death

by S. C. Stephens

  I wanted to respond, to tell him that I understood his fear and I loved him more than anything, but dying was an exhausting experience and sleep crept up on me. Mumbling something unintelligible, I once again slipped back into the darkness, if only for a little while.

  Chapter 11

  Emma 2.0

  I had odd dreams while I rested after my conversion. Odd dreams that I couldn’t quite remember, although as I woke, the sounds of distressed cattle were echoing in my brain. I had a feeling that my dreams were mainly settled around the feasting that had happened last night. Not wanting to think about the carnage, I instead focused on my deceased body.

  My eyes still closed, I listened for any sound coming from me. Usually, there was something - a heartbeat, the wind whooshing through my lungs, the food in my stomach digesting…something. But as I lay there, still not even breathing, everything was completely silent. Forcing myself to not instinctively inhale, I waited for the accompanying discomfit that the sensation would have given me had I been alive. I waited for the rising panic that shouted at my body to stop playing games and take the breath it needed. The feeling never happened though. I could have peacefully held my breath for hours on end.

  I inhaled deep anyway, enjoying the expansion and contraction of my lungs, even if I didn’t need them. Scent rushed in on me as I did. From in the room, I was barraged with the creosote from the cold fireplace. From out in the hall, the familiar Freesia scent filtered in to me. Farther away, I could pick out candles, furniture polish, and the unmistakable scent of bacon. Yesterday, the bacon scent would have had my mouth watering. Today, I immediately discarded it, moving on to the scent overriding everything in my world. Blood. Somewhere downstairs was fresh blood; I could practically smell the heat of it.

  My eyes flashed open. If my stomach could have rumbled, it would have. I remembered Teren having to eat continually the first few days after his conversion and thought my hunger was due to my newness. My fangs started slipping down, but I pulled them back up. I was still me. I could control the cravings until they subsided into the more normal range.

  Lying on my side, perfectly still and straight, a face suddenly filled my vision. I smiled as Teren’s pale eyes locked onto mine. “Good morning, sleepy. Or should I say, good afternoon?” He half smiled as he lay beside me, his hand coming up to brush some hair off of my cheek.

  I smiled wider at the pleasing feeling of his soft, room temperature touch. While there were some aspects of him being cold that I would miss, mainly in the intimate part of our relationship, it would be nice to hold him without shivering.

  Wondering if his mouth would no longer be icy either, I murmured, “Good afternoon to you too.” My words registering with me, my eyes widened and I sat up. As shock and worry flew through me, I waited for my heart to surge; naturally, it didn’t. “Afternoon? I’m seriously late for work. They’re gonna can me.”

  Teren tilted his head and smirked. “Do you really think I’d let you get fired? After everything you did to get back there?” He smiled wider, his face peaceful as he shifted to his back, propping his hands behind his head and crossing his ankles.

  Taking in his relaxed posture, I relaxed as well. “I guess not. What did you tell them?”

  He chuckled softly, his eyes playful. “I told Tracey that you were feeling a little under the weather after your weekend, and you’d be missing a few days.” Laughing a little more, he added, “I think she thinks you’re still hung-over.”

  I smiled, then sighed. I’d have to go back sooner or later, and face the same obstacles Teren had faced when he’d gone back. But he’d managed it pretty simply, I was sure I would too. Aside from being cold and not ever able to eat around humans, I’d be essentially the same as before.

  Hearing my sigh, Teren sat up and rested his hand over mine. “It will be okay, Emma. You’re through the hardest part. The hunger will be more and more manageable every day.” Smiling softly, he stroked my skin. He leaned in to kiss me, his lips as warm to me as the rest of him. “Speaking of that, Mom’s got some blood ready for you, if you’re hungry now.”

  Feeling a discomfort in my belly, the same sort of discomfort that you get before your stomach growls, I nodded. “Starving.” My mouth felt parched to me too and I dryly swallowed.

  I didn’t have to say more than that before Alanna was standing in my door, steaming thermos in hand. “Here you go, sweetheart.” Her smile was a wide one when she handed it to me and my ears picked up the sound of Jack humming outside. I figured her joy was as much at being reunited with him as it was that I was safe.

  Thanking her, I watched Imogen causally standing at my doorway. Taking a much needed sip of plasma, I waved her into the room. Smiling as widely as her daughter, she walked through a bright patch of sunshine. She cringed slightly before stopping herself. I suppose it was still an odd feeling for her, being in the sun when she’d avoided it her entire life.

  Leaning down, she placed a warm, grandmotherly kiss on my head. “I’m so glad you made it through, Emma.”

  Taking only a fraction of second to pause and thank her, I continued downing my soothing treat. It was hotter than I recalled it being, the heat flowing all the way down my body, warming me from the inside out. It only made the experience more enjoyable, as the liquid satisfied the burn of thirst and the discomfort of hunger. I couldn’t imagine anything ever tasting better and I had no desire to have anything else.

  The very idea of consuming anything else suddenly sounded about as appealing as eating the mud pies that I used to make as a kid. I hadn’t understood how Teren had suddenly had no interest in food after his change, but now I did. Anything that wasn’t this was suddenly a little nauseating. Just the thought of having a piece of the bacon that I could smell lingering in the air from downstairs made me feel a little ill. It gave me a whole new appreciation for when Teren had forced food down his throat for me.

  After finishing my drink, I stared into the thermos and considered licking the rim. Laughing softly, Alanna asked, “Would you like another, Emma?”

  Cringing, I looked up at her. “If that’s okay? I know I’ve taken a lot…lately.”

  Lightly shaking her head, she patted my shoulder. “You’re an Adams, Emma. You may have as much as you need.”

  Walking at a normal pace, Alanna and Imogen headed back down to the kitchen, talking over how surprising things had been around the ranch lately, what with Gabriel’s light blocking windows being put up, Starla’s sudden need for all of my shots, and my unexpected conversion. As they entered the kitchen they started debating what other surprises might be in store.

  Teren listened to them with his head tilted, then settled in to kiss me again. Pushing back the extra conversations, I focused on the one thing that always grounded me, my constant, him. Feeling his lips move over mine, his hands clenching my hip, I started to understand what he’d told me once about seeing the world differently. I felt every molecule of air against my cheek. I heard every brush of noise in the room. Through my slotted eyes, I saw variations of color that had never existed to me before.

  But instead of it being overpowering, it made everything seem more…real. Like I’d been living in a sepia-toned silent film my whole life. At the time, that had seemed rich and full to me. Then I’d been bitten, and thrust into the world of Technicolor. That had seemed miraculous, and I’d wondered how I’d never noticed how flat the world was before. But now, now I’d been immersed into a high definition 3D film. It was beyond anything I’d ever imagined and as Teren had correctly told me once, I felt connected to the world, more a part of it than I’d ever felt before. I felt the very pulse of life washing over my unblemished skin.

  My half-closed eyes sprang open as I pulled away from Teren’s mouth. His tongue had just reached out to flick me and he seemed a little disgruntled that I’d made him miss. Ignoring how sexy his lip looked, curved into curious displeasure, my hand ran up to my neck. The spot that had forever been marked with a strange man’s teeth
was now smooth. Not feeling the rigid bumps of poorly healed skin made me giggle a little.

  I tried to look down to see the spot, but my eyes weren’t suddenly detachable or anything; there was just no way to see that angle myself. Teren chuckled at me as I hopped off the bed. “What are you doing?”

  Rushing over to the vanity, I stared at myself in the mirror. “Is it gone?” He walked up behind me as my wide brown eyes searched for any disruption of my smooth, creamy skin. “Is the scar gone?” My HD sight didn’t see any imperfection, but I still almost couldn’t believe it. I’d been carrying around that reminder for so many years now.

  Teren grinned as he leaned down and kissed the arch of my once-wounded neck. “It would seem so,” he whispered, chuckling again. Resting his chin on my neck, the course stubble familiar and comforting, his pale eyes watched me playfully.

  Closing mine, I laid my head back and sighed. “Thank god, I was so sick of looking at that.”

  Sighing as well, he kissed the tender skin again. “Me too,” he whispered.

  Lowering my head to look at him in the mirror, I reached up to run a hand through his pitch-black hair. Closing his eyes, he leaned in to my caress. My next words shot his eyes back open though. “Bite me,” I whispered.

  Pulling back, he locked eyes with me in the mirror. “Emma, I don’t think I should…you just went through something really…” He shrugged, looking torn that I’d ask him to do that right now.

  I shook my head, my eyes watering. “You never bite me there, not since that vampire…” I swallowed, a bit of thirst creeping back into my throat. I could hear and smell my blood being prepared downstairs, but right now, I wanted this more. “I need to replace that memory with a different one.” Moving my hair away from that shoulder, I completely exposed my neck to him. “Please, Teren?”

  His eyes flicked between mine, unsure. Sighing, he looked down at my neck. Opening his mouth as he stared at my skin, I watched him in the mirror as his fangs dropped down. My breath picked up and I was overly conscious of the absence of my heartbeat. Normally, it would have picked up too.

  Perhaps noticing that loss as well, his eyes flicked up at me. Our gazes unwavering, he opened his mouth wider, baring his fangs to me. Even with all we’d been through, all the time we’d had together, it was still hot when he did that. The parts of my body that still worked exactly the same as before reacted. Sensing the desire in me, his mouth curved into a cocky, self-assured grin. Lowering his head but maintaining our eye contact, he sunk his teeth into me. I gasped, then groaned. He’d done it with more force than he usually did. Since he didn’t have to worry about scarring me or killing me, it gave him some freedom when it came to biting me.

  His eyes rolled back before they closed. I kept mine open, watching him devour me. Everything about it was a little different than I was used to. His mouth and tongue were mildly warm as they worked over my skin, his hands massaging my hips equally chill-free. There wasn’t a pulling sensation as my blood left me. Since it moved on its own now, he didn’t have to put in any effort when he fed from me. I knew what that felt like, since I’d bitten him before. It was like turning on a faucet and sticking your head underneath it. And with our super healing skin, you only had to pull your teeth out to stop the flow.

  It still felt pretty erotic though, especially with the clear delight on his face. It made me smile that he still enjoyed my blood, even though it had to taste different now, or at least be colder than it once was.

  Scrunching my hand in his hair as I let out another soft moan, I watched him finally gasp and pull away. His teeth and his tongue were tainted red, but the twin holes on my neck healed right before my eyes. It was so weird to see that happening to my body. Breathing heavier, he grinned like he’d just had the best meal on the planet, or the best sex. It actually relieved me that my blood still made him feel that way.

  Squeezing me tight, he licked the last remnant of red from my neck. He made a near purring noise in his throat as his warm tongue lapped at me. Smiling as I ran my hand back through his hair, I murmured, “Do I still taste good to you?”

  Ignoring the moving sensation of Alanna and Imogen walking at a slow pace in our direction, since we were obviously…finished, I sighed as he paused to nibble on my ear. “Unbelievable,” he whispered back.

  Smiling as his lips made their way back to mine, I twisted in his arms to sling mine around his neck. “Am I different, taste-wise?”

  He grinned against my mouth. “It’s not hot like before, but that’s okay, it’s still the best thing I’ve ever tasted.” Pulling back, he ran his tongue over his lower lip. His eyes were so smoky I almost told his mother to give us a minute. But, sensing her on the stairs, I knew she was bringing me a second cup of blood, and my stomach was starting to ache for it, so I said nothing.

  Maybe seeing the hunger in my features, Teren released me, walking over to our bags on the dresser. Digging through them, he raised an eyebrow at me. “You are a bit different to me in one other way.”

  Torn between the alluring look still in his eye and the food coming closer and closer, I frowned a little as I crossed my arms over my chest. “Oh?”

  Grinning, he pulled out a light sweater that I’d packed. “Yeah, you aren’t nourishing for me anymore.” He shrugged, pulling out some pants. Tilting my head, I wondered what he meant. Handing me my change of clothes, since I was still in the pajamas he had put me in this morning, he lightly chuckled at the look of confusion on my face.

  Twisting his lip seductively, he leaned into me. “You’re sort of…vampiric candy.” Pausing, he closed his eyes for a second and inhaled me; I stopped breathing. Opening his eyes, he glanced down my body. “Sweet…but essentially void of all nutritional value.”

  “Thanks.” I smirked and smacked his arm right as his mom reappeared in the doorway. She chuckled at his remark but didn’t say anything about it.

  She also didn’t mention the dopey, fulfilled smile he had on his face as he watched me down my cup of nutritionally packed blood. I wanted to whisper at him to not look so…satisfied, but it really was kind of pointless. Both Imogen and Alanna had already heard him drink from me, and really, they’d heard much, much worse from us before. I had accepted the embarrassment of the situation a long time ago. Living around vampires, you just learned to give up things like privacy.

  Since I was still in an adjustment period and blood was going to be one of the top things on my mind, right under my children really, we decided we’d stay at the ranch for a few more days. Teren had stayed for several weeks after his conversion, but I didn’t feel like I could take that much time away from work on a whim. Besides, Teren’s break had had as much to do with the mental recovery of our abduction as his physical recovery. Truly, we could have gone back after the first week.

  Feeling more like myself once my stomach was topped off, Teren and I decided to go get the kids. Well, really, he’d wanted me to stay behind with the girls while he went and got them, but I missed them so much, I couldn’t just sit around and wait. Besides, I had some things to talk about with my mother. Things she probably wasn’t going to be too thrilled about.

  I played with the zipper of my jacket on the way over, my mind already nervous about what to say to my mom and anxious to see my children. Teren eyed me while he drove, noting the telltale signs of restlessness. “Do you have any idea what you’ll tell her?” he asked, nearly reading my mind.

  Sighing, I looked over at him and shrugged. “No, any suggestions?”

  Reaching over to grab my hand, he pulled it back over to his thigh. “Hmmm, I suppose ‘hey, Mom, I died last night’, would be a little harsh, huh?”

  I smirked at the playful look in his eye, the conversation he’d just put in my head. I could just imagine the freak-out if I told my mom like that. But really, what else was I supposed to tell her? Either way, she was going to have a mini coronary. There was just no way to ease a person into a conversation that involves the phrase “my heart stopped beatin
g.” I remembered my reaction when Teren had told me his was going to. Hopefully my mom didn’t start chucking things at me.

  Sighing as I leaned my head back on the seat, I closed my eyes and started tapping my foot. “No, I’ll think of something better than that.” I just had no idea what.

  Sooner than I would have liked, Teren was pulling up to her drive. I stared at the quaint little house, suddenly wondering if I should have stayed at the ranch, but I could feel my children inside and their pull was stronger than my anxiety. Forcing myself to do it at human speed, I cracked open my door. Teren followed suit, his smile as wide as mine was. While we’d been preoccupied with other things in the past twenty-four hours, being reunited with Nika and Julian reminded me how much I’d missed them. And with the ordeal I’d gone through, I couldn’t wait to hold them again.

  I didn’t need to announce my arrival, since I could hear my kids doing it for me. As soon as my foot was on the top step, the door was swinging inward. My mother’s warm, loving face filled my vision and I nearly wept at the way my newly-enhanced eyes saw her. It was almost like I could see the way she cared for me, like it was a physical trait, as apparent as the strikingly similar shade of chin length brown hair.