Her Vampire Hero (Midnight Doms Book 4)

by Nicolina Martin

  “I want to jump! Can I jump?”

  I’m by her side in the next moment. “No! You’ll break every bone in your body.”

  “Why? You jump.”

  “It’s because I’m old. Come.” I take her in my arms, reveling in the fact that she still feels like her, then we’re off, falling. Kat squeals and her joy is contagious, making me laugh.

  As soon as we hit the ground, she sniffs the air, then she runs. I keep up her pace with ease.

  “Can my blood heal?”

  “I don’t think so. Not yet.”

  “I’m strong, right?”

  “Very.”

  “So if I walk alone at night—”

  “No human can hurt you ever again.”

  “Oh my God, that’s awesome! Do you know what it’s like for a woman out here? I can be a vigilante! I can protect everyone!”

  I smile. “Perhaps not everyone everywhere, but I’m happy you haven’t lost your will to do good.”

  “Why would I— Oh. Oh! Do you smell that?” She stops and sniffs, turns right and darts across a trafficked street with no regard to the cars. Thankfully, they probably don’t even see her. She comes to a halt in front of a tired-looking woman who looks like she has barely awoken, probably on her way to an early shift. The woman stops and stares, her mouth falling open.

  “Don’t scream,” I say, catching her gaze. “Come.”

  Kat stares at her, her eyes filled with hunger. We move into the shadows behind a dumpster and Kat grabs the woman’s head, baring the side of her neck. I hear the soft whisk of fangs descending and then she buries them in the soft flesh of the human. She gulps, swallows, moaning. I keep track of the pace of the pulse, rapid from fear, but strong. She can lose half a liter without consequences. A liter will make her weak. Two will land her in the hospital. Kat is lost in the glory that is a fresh feed, her first feed. I need to show her how to sweeten it. In time. She will never be my sweetblood again, but something stirs in me at the thought of playing together, she and I, and a human for the feed. The thought arouses me to no end. I look along her body, painfully aware that I can push up her skirt and take her as she still drinks the hot blood, fresh from the vein.

  Speaking of. That’s enough.

  “Kat. Stop.”

  Of course she doesn't listen. She’s in bliss, lost in the taste. I’m stronger. “Kat. You don’t want to kill her.” No reaction. I tear her off the woman, holding a snarling vampire to my chest as I bite down on my wrist and heal the human with a few drops smeared on the wound, wiping her skin clean with a couple of rubs of my sleeve.

  “Go. Forget us.”

  Her wide, fear-filled eyes go blank, then she turns and disappears around the corner, never the wiser.

  “Why?” growls Kat.

  I glance at the sky that is turning a lighter gray. “I will never allow you to kill during a feed. Do you understand?”

  She groans. “But I wanted to!” Then she widens her eyes and slams a hand over her mouth. “Why did I want to? I don’t want to kill anyone.” She staggers. “I’m so tired. It’s so confusing, Lou.”

  I take her in my arms and jump, running, almost flying across town. Lately, I’ve begun to wonder if I will actually be able to fly one day. It’s not far off. Kat stares in wonder at the sky.

  “It’s beautiful.”

  I grimace. “Yes. Much like a jungle frog. Beautiful and deadly.” It’s too close. My every bone aches with the need to sleep. I don’t want Kat to incinerate on the first day of her new existence. The final jump is the hardest in my life. My body burns with exhaustion. “Get in there,” I growl. I push her before me, slam the vault shut, and fall onto the mattress with Kat following suit.

  “What’s sleeping like?”

  “You’ll see,” I slur.

  “I’m so horny.” She wraps her arms around my neck and presses her soft body close to mine. No longer heated and human, but still every bit Kat. “Everything tingles. When I wake, I’ll take you again.”

  Darkness closes in fast, but I manage a smile as I pull her to me. “I’ll hold you to it.”

  When I come to, the vault door is open and the room is empty. I shoot to my feet and dart out into the living room. She’s sitting on the railing, dangling her feet over the drop.

  “Why didn’t you want to turn me?” she says, still staring at the city below. Her voice different, dulled.

  I walk up to her side, my chest clenching with worry. If she falls she’ll heal, but she’ll be in the same pain as any human. It’ll be a mess.

  “You know why.”

  “I don’t understand why you think this is so awful. Look at it—” she gestures toward the mountains, the desert in the distance, “it’s beautiful.”

  “You’ll live with bloodlust for the rest of your life. You’ll never see the sun. You’ll see everyone you ever cared about wither and die.”

  “And I won’t be your sweetblood human.”

  “That’s not what it was about.”

  She snaps her head to look at me. “Oh, really? Because I don’t see anything wrong with this. I’m strong. I feel healthier than ever. I’ll get some mysterious, magical perks with time. I can still work as a doctor, visit my parents, I can do anything, and all you want to do is restrict me.”

  “You can not work as a doctor, Kat! You’ll eat your patients!”

  “Fuck you,” she spits, then she jumps.

  My world tilts. I hear a scream, a thud, then I jump, drop, and land by her side. She’s quiet at first. She looks whole, but I’m afraid to turn her over. One weak moan turns to a low wail of agony. I squeeze my eyes shut and grit my teeth, then I take a deep breath, scoop up her sickly broken body and bury her face against my chest so that her increasing wails won’t be heard. I’m up and laying her on the mattress in the next moment. She looks at me but doesn't say anything, and I lack words. Her agony burns in me.

  Tapping on the security panel, I change the code to the door, shut it behind me and take off to Club Toxic. I’m going to need blood. Lots and lots of blood.

  The sun set only about half an hour ago on Kat’s second night as a vampire, and it’s already a disaster. The entrance to the club is abandoned, but the door is open. I have nowhere else to turn. I can compel myself into a blood bank in a hospital, but it’ll take a lot longer.

  Augustus comes darting out from the official part of the nightclub. “We’re clo— Oh, hey man. Fuck. I heard. I’m sorry. It shouldn’t have happened.”

  I couldn’t agree more, but what’s done is done.

  “I need blood. She’s injured. I won’t bother you again, but I need it now. Please.”

  “It’s the least I can do. Come.”

  We descend into the dungeon. The memories of the nightmare from the other night slam into me with full force, knocking the air out of my lungs. I stare at the spot where I killed the sleazy human and the monstrous vampire. There is no trace left of what took place, but in the air there’s still a lingering scent of Kat’s blood, the last of her human blood, and my stomach tightens in pain.

  Why didn’t she talk to me? Didn’t she trust me? Maybe I’m not fair, but I can’t control the wave of jealousy that surges through me and blackens my mind. She gave her life to another man. He took her humanity and she went with him willingly. She wanted to die and turn and she didn’t come to me. I fight down the fury, the frustration, the fear. The last few days have messed with my mind and my emotions wreak havoc with my whole being.

  If anyone should have savored the last moments of her existence, it should have been me. I would have made it painless, turned her with love, care.

  Augustus stands before me. I don’t know how long he’s been watching me. He holds up a sports bag. “This is what I can give you on such short notice.” He holds my gaze, the silence mounting. “I don’t envy you,” he finally says. “By the way. Selene went to Baton Rouge.”

  I twitch with surprise, then I narrow my eyes. “Louisiana. Why?”

  “
She cares for your mate. She and Lucius are furious that it happened right under their noses.”

  “She went alone?”

  “Selene is strong. And motivated. If anyone can get inside Solero’s court and take him out, it’s her.”

  “He has survived assassination attempts before.”

  Augustus dangles the bag on his index finger and doesn't answer.

  “But he hasn’t met Selene,” I conclude and take the bag. It’s true. The power she radiates is magnificent and like nothing I have ever encountered before. No wonder she spellbound Lucius. I think of Kat and a tug of longing erupts in my chest. I have never met someone like her before either. Warm, joyous, clever, curious.

  Mine.

  Fleeing the mad king might have turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to me. After all these years.

  “Go to your woman. Take care of her.”

  I throw one last dark look at the door to the room where Kat died, at the floor, around the club where we’ve spent so much time. I want to scream, and flying up the stairs, I escape into the night. Running toward the desert, I let out my agony, roaring to the stars, to the injustice of the fickle gods. If a vampire could die from a broken heart, I’d turn to ash. I contemplate sitting it out, just running until dawn, until it’s too late, but I won’t abandon her. I’ll help her heal. I was selfish to take her from her life. I could have taken the chance that she wouldn’t have talked about what she had seen. I could have nudged her mind a tiny little bit, made her forget about fangs, made her doubt that my heart suddenly started beating out of nowhere.

  I didn’t. She paid the highest price.

  A tug in my heart makes me stop, sand rising in a cloud around my feet. She calls for me. I hear her from miles away. We have a blood bond. It never even struck me, but I sired her. I didn’t claim her life, but she’s mine nonetheless.

  I want to vomit at the realization that it could have been Bass. She could have been sired to Bass! Spinning around, I run back, faster than ever. She’s in pain. Great pain. Her agony twists my mind, making my eyes tear up. Punching the code, I dart to her side, kneeling as I pull open the zipper to the bag.

  She’s unrecognizable, her skin bruised, body mangled, her limbs deformed. They’ll knit together again, there’s no need to correct their position, but the sight is nauseating. She opens one eye the little she can manage through the swelling.

  “You were right,” she whispers.

  “Mm-hmm.” I grit my teeth and hold up a blood bag. “Fangs out.”

  She parts her lips but nothing happens. “I’ve forgotten how.”

  “Jeez. No you haven’t.” I tear open the bag with my own teeth and put it to her lips, listening to her swallowing.

  Her eyes tear up and she bends to the side. “It hurts… to swallow.” Blood dribbles along her chin, along her neck, precious drops wasted.

  “I don’t care. Drink. You’ll hurt much longer if you don’t.”

  Tears stream down her temples as she obeys. I sigh with relief when her fangs snap out. It’s a tiny sign, but it’s still a sign of healing. Bloody, obnoxious, stubborn woman.

  I spend the next few nights by her side, watching her bruises pale, her limbs straighten. I wash her, feed her, and curse her.

  On the third night, my instincts flare, making tingles run through my veins. Someone is here. A vampire. I listen, wait.

  “Lou. Come out from wherever you’re hiding. I can smell you from a mile away.”

  I sigh with relief. Selene.

  Punching the code, I exit the safe room, making sure to lock it behind me. I’m not taking any chances. Not with Kat getting out. Not with anyone getting in there.

  Selene wears a tight, white dress and her long pale hair flows over her shoulders, making her look wild, almost feral. She smells of human, of sweet blood, reminding me how hungry I am.

  “This is a step up,” she says and looks around.

  I throw out my arms and gesture toward the couch. “It serves my needs. I have nothing to offer. The blood I have goes to Kat. I’m sorry.”

  Selene gestures dismissively. “I’m good, and I heard. Was she a little bit pissed with you by any chance?”

  I tense. I’m still not comfortable with the subject of my reluctance to turn her.

  She laughs. “Anyway. I came to tell you that I took care of the Louisiana issue for you. The king is ash and his followers are fighting for the throne. It’s a mess. I left a war zone behind. No one will bother you again.”

  “You didn’t have to. I would have enjoyed taking him out.”

  “You have your little newborn to care for. She needs you here. I like her and besides, it was fun. It’s been a long time since I had a good fight.”

  “Did Solero put up a fight?” I find it hard to believe. He was a coward, hiding behind his sired and his shifter lackeys.

  “Not really,” says Selene and grins, showing her fangs. “I shifted and snuck in behind his defenses. No one looked my way. I hadn’t prepared any speech. I just took him out and left the same way I came.”

  “I appreciate it,” I say. And I do. I would have taken care of it eventually, but having to look over my shoulder while guiding Kat into the unlife would have been distracting, to say the least.

  She stands. “Don’t be a stranger, Lou. I know you’re restless, and you won’t stick around for long, but we’ll be here. Come visit.”

  I make promises I have no idea if I’ll keep, watch her leave, and then go back to Kat’s side, the only place I want to be.

  “Are you mad at me?” she says when we wake on the fourth night.

  I’ve closed my emotions off these nights of healing. Feeling her pain as if it were my own, her tears and her pleading, have ravaged my heart. I’ve cursed the bond between us more than once. My every cell screams with ravenous hunger. I have given her every drop of blood, saving nothing for myself.

  “I don’t know what to say. Why in the hell did you jump?”

  “I was angry.”

  “You could have just punched me.”

  “If Ipunched you, I would have jumped your bones. I was angry. I didn’t want to fuck.”

  I push my hand through my hair and sigh. “Christ, woman!”

  She sits up with a groan, patting down her body then looks up at me with a gleam in her eyes, mischief playing on her features. I sense her arousal rising. She’s completely untamed, and I’m not feeling it, not after everything.

  “No.”

  “Come on! I’m healed. Look.” She pulls off her shirt, baring her chest and her delectable, perfect handful of breasts, making my cock jump to life.

  “No,” I say again, grabbing her wrists as she reaches for me. All I see before me is Bass burying his fangs in her throat. Her distrust and her betrayal pounds in me, hot as if I’m running a fever.

  Kat pulls free, puts the shirt back on and stands. “What’s wrong?”

  I get to my feet and punch the code, striding out to the living room. We haven’t even lived here yet.

  “Lou?” She grabs my arm.

  “Why the fuck did you let him touch you?”

  “Him? Bass?” She tightens her jaw. I hold her gaze, waiting. “I asked and asked. You didn’t want to turn me.”

  “Why did you want to die so badly?”

  She spins around and storms through the room, stopping by the window where she turns back toward me. “I wanted to be with you! How is that so hard to understand? You refused to talk about it. You just kept saying no!”

  “What was the rush, Kat? We could have spent years together, gotten to know each other, made the decision together, let it mature.”

  “You just wanted my blood,” she screams.

  A red haze of rage veils my vision. I dart to her, gripping her arms, towering over her. “What are you on about? You were much more than that, and you know it!”

  “Were?”

  I freeze. I want to take it back, but it’s out there. I meant her as a human, but it’s not wha
t it sounds like, and it’s not how she interprets it.

  “Fuck you, Lou! Fuck you! I don’t ever want to see you again!” Bursting into tears, she darts toward the terrace doors, then changes direction, no doubt realizing it’s a really stupid idea to jump again, and disappears out the front door without another word.

  I have half a mind to go after her. I’d catch up with ease. Clenching my teeth, I force myself to remain. She needs to get it out of her system. She’ll be back before dawn. She has nowhere else to go. Where we go from there, I don’t know. Vampires, especially newborns, are emotional and sometimes stubborn beyond reason. She’ll be back because she needs to, but I can’t make her stay with me if she truly wants to leave.

  A low howl of agony tears through my chest, increasing in strength until my roar echoes through the night. All my lonely years come crashing over me, and it’s as if a vortex opens beneath me, threatening to swallow me whole.

  If I fall, if I lose her, I will never find my way back again.

  Chapter 19

  Kat

  I’m so angry and disappointed that I could scream. I dart out onto the street. It’s still early. The air is chilly and I’m barefoot, dressed in nothing but a shirt. I snarl at passersby, staring at me.

  “Forget.” I say, holding the gaze of the nearest guy. He blinks and his eyes go blank. A shudder runs through me. I have no idea what I just did. I don’t know who I am, or what I can do. I just know that I’m a knot of emotions and I think I’m going crazy.

  Were.

  ‘You were more to me.’

  Were.

  I sob out loud and run along the sidewalk, across the street, darting between the cars.

  I did it for him. Sean’s betrayal burns in me. How could he? He was a human, too. Like me. I somehow understand Bass’ actions better. He is, or was—I doubt they let him live — a vampire, and I know the lure of wanting to feed until the very last drop. I’ve only experienced it that one time, but it was irresistible. He was offered me on a plate and took the chance. I meant nothing to him, but Sean. Fuck him! God, I hope he’s dead. Or, I don’t. I want to kill him. My fangs snap out from the mere thought. I want to drain him.