Keep It In The Blood: A Vampire Romance For Adults

by Samantha Snow

  Vivian’s eyes widened in surprise as she realized who the voice belonged to. It was her servant, Donovan. And he dispatched her tormentor so quickly that the guy didn’t have a chance to look at him.

  “Lord, Don, what a mess you’ve made of the floor,” said Vivian, clicking her tongue in mock distaste. “Where have you been all this time anyway? Down here?”

  “I came down to explore and couldn’t get out again,” he admitted, blushing.

  “I just did the same thing.”

  “So, who is your forceful friend?” he wanted to know.

  “A Carpathian, apparently,” she sighed. “Accompanied by three more, who were just ordered not to follow us because he did not want to give them a show. What do you say you and I find out if there actually is another door?”

  “I’ve searched for four days already, Vivian,” Donovan scoffed. “If there is another door, surely I would already know of it by now.”

  “A code, then?” she said. “There must be someone in here who would know the code.”

  “I have yet to encounter anyone down here but Seth and six other providers, and those others are locked in their rooms,” he sighed. “And if Seth knows the code, he has not said so. We were simply waiting for Eb or one of the other servants to send down for him again, and then I was going to leave at the same time.”

  “But that doesn’t seem right,” Vivian said, confused. “Seth came up to our rooms two nights ago. How did you not leave at that time?”

  “I’m not sure, Vivian,” Donovan sighed. “Perhaps I was asleep at the time. I’ve yet to accustom myself to staying awake all night and sleeping during the day.”

  “Well, from the sound of things, you’re going to have to give it a try,” she replied. “Zach intends for me to turn you into a vampire.”

  Donovan’s eyes widened slightly. “Do you think that may be why?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “If Eb were to believe I’d become a vampire—his superior—when he feels he should be the next in line, might he ensure that I went missing for a time?”

  “That doesn’t make sense, though,” Vivian pointed out. “Ebenezer is Zach’s most trusted ghoul. Why would he wish to go against the wishes of his master?”

  “I don’t know, but what other explanation can there be? Seth must have told him where I was, I’m sure.”

  “Seth didn’t tell him,” Vivian decided. “It isn’t Eb who is jealous; it’s him. A man who wants to become a ghoul, confronted by a ghoul who has usurped his place in line. Think about it, Don. If Zach calls for your embrace, he may be less inclined to elevate Seth, at least in his mind. But he doesn’t understand you will not be Zach’s child; you will be mine. If we explain that, maybe he will be more forthcoming with a way outside.”

  “You think that he lied?” asked Donovan, frowning. “If I find out he would betray our new lord in such a way, I will kill him myself.”

  “Don, use your brain for once,” she complained. “If you kill him, how would Zach ever know if your words are the truth? Better to expose him and let Zach decide what to do. He may have a particular purpose for Seth too.”

  “Viv, if you turn me—” he began, blushing. “Well, if it’s you, you do know—uh, well.”

  “If you’re trying to point out that such an exchange is usually sexual, spit it out, Don,” she chuckled. “Zach has already told me that aspect of things would be understood.”

  “Then you—don’t mind?” he asked hesitantly.

  “Better a man I know and care for than some man I don’t even like,” she replied, kicking the body that still lay at their feet. “But this is neither the time nor place to talk about all that. Don’t forget, there are three very real vampires just outside that door. They won’t wait forever for Vlad here to return from his—mission, I guess you could call it.”

  Donovan chuckled. “No, but with how beautiful you are, they very well might be trying to figure out how they could join the fray.”

  “Donovan! Don’t be disgusting!”

  “You may as well learn now how men’s minds work,” he pointed out. “You are not a well-protected virgin anymore.”

  “Neither am I a camp follower,” she growled.

  “No, Viv, no,” he said, giving her a hug with one arm. “But you are a vampire, while I am only a ghoul. If those boys do come in here, a lot of the fighting will have to be up to you.”

  “Great,” she grumbled. “And I’m so ridiculous I could barely figure out how to sprout a pair of wings. These guys are seasoned warriors. I don’t see how we could stand a chance.”

  “Do you think you could call Zach to you?” he asked her.

  “I might be able to,” she nodded. “Especially if we really are bonded by a child.”

  “Already, Viv?” he teased. “You sure do like to work fast.”

  “Well, what can I say?” she chuckled. “I am my father’s daughter.”

  “We need to hide you someplace where you can concentrate,” Donovan said decisively. “I think I know just the place. Follow me.”

  Without any hesitation, Vivian followed Donovan. He opened a hidden panel in the wall, and the two of them slipped inside. The room they entered was dark before the wall slid into place again and then lit up with a couple of fluorescent lights. It looked like a panic room, with a bed and a bathroom and a small supply of non-perishable foods.

  “Where are we, Don?”

  “For all intents and purposes, this is currently my bedroom,” he explained, blushing slightly.

  Vivian smirked at him. “I hope you don’t think we’ll be getting started on turning you already,” she commented dryly. “I need you to be able to fight, Don. If I turned you now, you’d be out of it for quite a while.’

  He chuckled. “That’s not why I brought you in here, Vivian. We’re trying to get ahold of Zach, remember? If you can manage to contact him, he may just be able to save our lives.”

  “Why is it, after so many years, you still can’t tell when I’m teasing you?” she complained.

  “And why is it that, after so many years, you can’t tell when I knew you were teasing me, and was trying to do the same?”

  “Donnie!” she complained, blushing. “Where should I sit? I need to concentrate.”

  “Lay on the bed, of course,” he said. “Lying down should help you to relax completely.”

  “Oh yeah, I’m going to relax completely while I know there are vicious, killer vampires just outside the door, and right after I just told my best friend in the whole world that my mate thinks it’s okay for the two of us to get sexual. Perfect time to take a nap, wouldn’t you say?”

  Donovan was grinning. “Well, would it help if we got some of the tension out of the way?”

  “Don’t you even dare!” she grumbled. “I can’t believe we’re having this conversation!”

  “Lie down and think, Vivian,” he told her. “We haven’t got all day.”

  *

  Zach had been unaware that quite so many Carpathians had gathered beyond his walls, but he was not overly surprised by it. All he could really think was that it was lucky for the mortals that most of them did not venture out into the woods at night, or they would have become casualties in the melee that ensued.

  Carnage and death on both sides abounded, but it looked as though his men, and the men sent in from the Arimathean, finally had everything under control. He had barely managed to take a steady breath after killing his final foe when he felt a little tickle at the back of his brain.

  Vivian?

  Trapped here in the dungeon. Found Donovan here. Carpathians have infiltrated; we are hiding inside the walls. Need help.

  Viv, you don’t have to abbreviate like you’re using a telegraph, he teased her. The battle is won. We will be right down.

  Thanks!

  “Alex? You’re with me,” he said, grabbing his brother’s arm and dragging him along. “Some of the Carpathians found their way down into the dungeon, where I sent Vivian
. We need to go down there and get her out.”

  “It may be wise to take a few others along.”

  Ravi said, “I must accompany the two of you, of course. I would not wish to see any harm befall the princess while under my watch. Her father would be most displeased.”

  “Very well,” Zach agreed.

  The three men went quickly inside and headed down the long flights of stairs. Zach motioned them to silence as they approached the entrance, and they all stood to either side for a few moments while he rattled the doorknob. An arrow cut through the wood, right where someone might have been standing if they hadn’t known, and thudded to the floor.

  They gave the archer no chance to reload but immediately went inside. A battle ensued, and the Arimatheans subdued all three vampires almost immediately.

  “Alex, start questioning the one who is still alive,” said Zach. “I believe you know what I want to find out.”

  “Indeed, I do, brother,” he said, setting one of his feet on the other vampire’s head. “And so does he.”

  “You may as well crush my skull now,” he growled. “I will tell you nothing.”

  “Don’t tempt me, asshole,” Alex told him. “You and your people have been putting us through a lot of trouble. Why don’t you save us all some time and simply tell me your exact orders?”

  “And why would I want to do that?” he sneered.

  “Because it would be incredibly nice of you?”

  “Fuck you,” he growled.

  “Well, well, I guess you’d rather do this the hard way,” Alex smirked. “That could be fun, too.”

  “Alex, take that to the torture chamber, will you?” Zach complained. “I need to go rescue Vivian, and I doubt she’ll want to see what you’re about to do.”

  “Move it, you lousy carp,” said Alex, practically dragging the other vampire with him.

  “Shall I accompany your brother or you?” Ravi asked, smirking.

  “You may as well go with him,” said Zach, winking. “Viv said she’s hiding in a bedroom.”

  He smirked as he turned and also left the room.

  When he opened the wall, Zach found Vivian lying on the bed and Donovan in a chair watching over her as she slept. He looked up at Zach, relieved.

  “Thank goodness somebody who knows how to get out of here has finally come,” he said on a sigh. “I’ve been trapped for four days now.”

  “That’s strange. I wonder why Eb would have left you in here and told me that you were missing,” said Zach speculatively.

  “It was Seth I told about my presence,” Donovan replied. “Vivian thinks he failed to tell Ebenezer I’m in here because he was jealous of me. That he thought having me around would make you much less likely to make him a ghoul.”

  “Well, after this little fiasco, I think ghouls are not what I need,” he commented dryly. “I’ve given a lot of thought about you in particular, actually. I need more vampires, but I don’t possess the blood to sustain them all. In your case, I have told Vivian she must help.”

  “She’s told me your plans already,” Donovan replied. “You do know such a bite will change the nature of our friendship together irrevocably?”

  “I have given my permission to her, though she thought it would go against our own relationship should she choose to act upon it,” Zach chuckled. “Clearly, she does not know how the whole thing works. In this case, Donovan, you would become our third.”

  “She also said she might be pregnant,” he added thoughtfully. “But if she’s not, would it not worry you that I might do the deed?”

  “Do you not know?” Zach asked, smirking. “Only the sire can impregnate his bride. So that’s not a thing.”

  Donovan chuckled. “This is one conversation I never expected to be having, but since we are, I feel I need to point out another thing.”

  “What’s that?”

  “I—er—I’ve never had sex with more than one partner on any occasion,” he admitted, blushing. “Your brother, Will, seemed to like it, but that is probably because Charles seems to be up for anything, and from what I understand, he’d been into that lifestyle from the beginning.”

  “Yes, Will is a very—adventurous person,” Zach agreed. “As for me, I’ve never had the occasion to—well, you know—imbibe in such activities either. That’s not to say that if Vivian wanted to, I wouldn’t give it a try.”

  “Seriously?” Donovan groaned. “But I mean, you wouldn’t want to do things to me, right? I mean, we’d only be there for her?”

  Smirking, Zach moved closer to Donovan and gazed into his eyes. “Right now, if I wanted to, I could mesmerize you into doing pretty much anything I’d like. You do know that, right? But once you are a vampire and in Vivian’s thrall, it would be her you were trying to please in all things. So, the only way you’d be touching me would be if she wanted you to. Somehow, I don’t see that happening.”

  “Stop it, will you?” Donovan asked, blushing as Zach caught his chin and gave it a squeeze.

  He laughed and let him go. “I’m not sure you’ve got all the ghoul feeding out of you yet,” he told him then. “We won’t be able to turn you for another two weeks. However, that’s no reason to not move you into the bedroom across the hall from our suite and begin to familiarize ourselves with one another. Vivian will be your maker, Donovan, but I will expect your loyalty in all things. Is that understood?”

  “Yes, sir,” he agreed.

  *****

  Alex stood waiting for them as the trio emerged from the panic room, and his face looked quite grim. “Well, brother, the Carpathian is dead now. But you’re not going to like the news.”

  “Tell me,” said Zach, sighing.

  “As you may have surmised, these attacks are not just about Vivian,” he said. “They are not even just about you. It seems that the Carpathians are angry over our family’s involvement in the overthrowing of their lord. They are targeting us all.”

  “But that means that Will could be in trouble too,” Zach groaned.

  “I have already given him a call,” said Alex, holding up his cell phone. “He and the others were never able to return to his primary residence. It was already overrun. Right now, he is en route with them to Colorado.”

  “To the Arimathean stronghold?” asked Vivian knowingly.

  “The same,” Alex said, nodding. “If you want my opinion, we ought to be doing the same. If the Carpathians truly hope to end us all, that is a much safer place for us. Endless numbers of guard, and a network of caves they cannot enter without getting past them all. And even if they did, they would still have to penetrate the fortress walls within.”

  “Yes, and a whole colony of willing blood providers, too,” Ravi added with a little smile. “I have already ordered my men to return here to help escort everyone there. I believe you will wish to bring along your household ghouls too, will you not? Unless you would be cruel enough to leave them here to die.”

  “Of course I wouldn’t do that,” Zach replied. “There are seven blood providers here right now, but I do not think bringing them is wise. We will finish off the others, and bring Seth along for the ride. I would like to determine if he or Ebenezer was keeping Donovan captive in here. I’ll need to see the two of them together before I actually decide.”

  “Do you really think Eb would lie?” asked Vivian.

  “Sweetheart, look at the facts,” said Zach. “Eb might be displeased with Donovan’s presence because he thinks it means I will not elevate him to vampire, just as much so as Seth might dislike the presence of a new ghoul getting in his way.”

  “Here’s a thought,” Donovan said then. “What if they were in on the thing together?”

  Zach and Vivian gazed at each other with widened eyes.

  “The plot thickens,” said Vivian.

  “Curiouser and curiouser,” Zach replied.

  CHAPTER 12

  “Our car has advanced shielding throughout, Lord Zach,” Donovan insisted. “You know very well the Carpathi
ans will try to block us from using the airport. For the others, they may be able to use various means to leave, but I must insist, once again, that I drive you and Vivian with me. If we’re about to become a trio, then that is how we should begin acting, as you yourself told me.”

  “Donnie, not in front of the children,” Zach teased, glancing over at Ebenezer and Seth, who both glared. “Hey, kids, you two will both become vampires when we get to the stronghold. I’m going to need to reinforce my numbers after this little fiasco.”

  “I wondered if that was why I was spared,” said Seth, somewhat mollified.

  “Just don’t let it go to your head, fodder,” said Donovan, smirking at him. “Don’t think I’ll soon forget about you knowing that code and making me stay inside the dungeon anyway.”

  “I already apologized,” he complained. “Just because you’re in thick with those two doesn’t mean you get to pick on me, you know.”

  “Third or not, I’m never letting you live it down,” Donovan replied. “And why are you two still standing there anyway? Do you expect the van to wait for you forever?”

  “Oh, sorry. Zach usually takes me wherever he goes,” Ebenezer chuckled. “I didn’t realize you three wanted to be alone,”

  “Well, of course we do,” said Zach as he wrapped one arm around Donovan and the other around Vivian, then touched his tongue to his teeth suggestively. “How else are we going to get to know one another better?”

  “Very well then,” he said, grasping Seth by an arm and dragging him along as he headed for their vehicle.

  “I see the two of you have been talking about some things while I slept,” smirked Vivian. “I don’t remember having had this conversation, but it sure does sound interesting.”

  The two men grinned at each other.

  “We were saving it for when we’re safe, Viv,” said Zach with a little wink.

  “Well, that’s good to know,” she replied. “Zach, I think you should listen to Don on this one. We made it here in one piece using that car, and I truly believe it could take us back to the stronghold just as easily.”