Midnight Moon (Love and Blood Series Book 1)

by Raven K. Asher

  “That’s good.” I breathe out. “Hopefully they don’t run into any more problems.”

  Dominick and Kane nod in agreement.

  After a few moments, Dominick turns his attention towards me. “Which way is it to your old house?”

  I point towards the road. “It’s that way.”

  He nods and then begins walking in the direction I had pointed.

  When I make no move to follow, he stops and then turns around to look at me with a raised brow.

  “This is the road where I was attacked by Lux,” I answer his unspoken question.

  “It’s time to put that behind you, Sweetheart. We need to keep moving forward so we can put an end to this part of your life.” Dominick replies gently.

  He had a point. It was time to put this mess behind me. I needed to embrace what I had become since there was no way to go back to my old life.

  Sighing softly I move forward.

  Dominick holds out his hand towards me, and I take it. He gives me the strength that I need to move on.

  As we walk down the road, I glance back at Kane and then hold out my other hand towards him. He takes my hand in his and smiles down at me as he moves to my side.

  I smile at him and then at Dominick. I couldn’t believe how lucky I had gotten to find these two men. I was lucky to have them both at my sides.

  21-No Father of Mine

  Kane, Dominick, and I quickly find ourselves just down the street from the house that I had grown up in; the house where I had scrapped my knee learning how to ride my bike, the home where I had my first kiss under the moonlight.

  From where we were standing it didn’t seem quite as big as it used to.

  I felt worlds away from the girl I had been.

  “I think we should go through a back door or something. I don’t want anyone to predict our approach.” Dominick stresses.

  “We’ll go through the backyard,” I reply before I begin walking back the way we had come.

  If we went over a block, we could sneak through the neighbor’s yard and then into my parent’s yard without anyone ever noticing.

  Kane and Dominick follow me without saying a word.

  Once we reach the back door, I grab the spare key hidden in one of my mother’s potted plants next to the door. I unlock the door and then open it slowly.

  We’re met with nothing but darkness inside the house.

  Dominick pushes past me to enter the house first. I follow along with Kane as he makes his way through the house room by room.

  We come to a stop in the kitchen.

  The lights flip on abruptly, and I curse.

  “It’s a shame that Jake failed at the simple task of killing you,” Dad states as he moves around us to sit down at the kitchen table where my mother was already sitting.

  Her eyes glisten with unshed tears as she glances between me, Dominick, and Kane with fear.

  “I should have known that he wasn’t man enough to do it.” Dad sighs.

  “He killed a lot of good people,” I growl out.

  “You mean monsters; he killed monsters. At least he did something right.” Dad replies.

  After a moment Dad pins me with a glare. “I see you’ve been whoring yourself around. I never thought I could be disgusted anymore with you than I already was.”

  Kane and Dominick growl in response but thankfully remain standing at my sides.

  Dad snorts in amusement. “It didn’t take you long to get over Jake.”

  “Enough…” I snap.

  I didn’t want to hear another word from my father. I wasn’t going to stand here and allow him to speak to me like that.

  All I get is a bark of laughter in response.

  “Howard, maybe you should stop.” Mom tries.

  Dad pins her with a glare. “That girl is not your daughter. She is a monster, and she would kill you in a heartbeat. She is a monster, nothing more, Fran.”

  Mom whimpers as a few tears roll down her cheeks.

  She was breaking my heart.

  “Mom, I’m still me. What I am doesn’t change who I am. I’m still your daughter that you know and love.” I try.

  Without warning my father stands and then shoves me back.

  I growl and shove him just as hard as he had shoved me.

  He stands back with a smug grin on his face. With my anger at an all-time high, I was sure that my eyes had changed.

  Dad was proving his point to my mother.

  Mom gasps as I look at her helplessly. More tears begin streaming down her cheeks as she cries softly.

  “If you shove Ava one more time I will not hold back,” Dominick warns suddenly.

  “Go ahead and kill me. Give this town and every town around a reason to come after you beasts. I’ll gladly die in order to eradicate you from this planet.” Dad replies seriously.

  Dominick curses. “I’m not about to make you a martyr.”

  “I don’t even know who you are anymore,” I whisper. “My father never would have said something like that. He would never have disowned his daughter either. My father would never have sent a young man to his death either.”

  “Then you didn’t know me very well. I would do it all over again and I will until you are dead.” He replies.

  It was clear that this man before me wasn’t the father that I had known and loved.

  He was the one who was evil, not us.

  There wasn’t an ounce of love left in my heart for him.

  “There won’t be a second that I won’t be after you. I will hunt you down and kill every single vampire that I find until you’re dead.” Dad bites out before he reaches back and produces a wooden stake.

  I take a step back along with Kane and Dominick.

  “Howard…” Mom whimpers.

  Dad doesn’t back down.

  “Don’t do this.” I plead uselessly.

  He ignores me while turning his attention directly towards Dominick. “I’ll kill this one first, so you have to watch.”

  As he takes another step towards Dominick, my anger gets the best of me.

  Mom screams loudly as I attack my father. I manage to dislodge the stake from his hand right before I sink my fangs deep into his neck.

  Once his blood hits my tongue, I pull away while grasping my throat.

  My tongue and throat were on fire thanks to his blood.

  Dad laughs out menacingly. “That worked perfectly.”

  “What did you do to her?” Kane snarls as he pulls me protectively into his arms.

  “My blood poisoned her. Once it reaches her heart, she’ll be in agonizing pain for days, if she lasts that long.” Dad announces before chuckling. “I doubt she’ll last that long though. Most of the vampires I’ve poisoned ripped out their own hearts before the poison could have a chance to wear off.”

  Dominick growls before suddenly rushing forward.

  With one swift motion, he breaks my father’s neck. My mother screams again as Dominick turns his attention towards her.

  “Do you believe what your husband did?” He questions her.

  She shakes her head. “I never wanted anyone to get hurt. I don’t want Ava to get hurt. She’s still my daughter. She will always be my baby.”

  “Good answer, now I need to know what you plan on doing about this.” He pushes.

  “I’ll tell everyone that he was attacked by some other vampire.” She replies quickly.

  Dominick sighs and then turns towards me as I gasp for my next breath. I swear it felt as if I was burning from the inside out.

  “Kane, we need to get her back home before this gets worse.” Dominick stresses.

  Mom stands and then rushes over to the medicine cabinet. She pulls out a handful of bottles before moving in front of Dominick.

  “I don’t know which one of these is the poison but maybe your people can figure out an antidote,” Mom explains as she hands the bottles to Dom.

  “Whatever you do just take care of my daughter.” She adds softly.


  “I will,” Dominick promises. “I love her, and I’ll protect her until my last breath.”

  Without warning, Mom pulls Dominick into an embrace. He awkwardly wraps his arms around her.

  After a few moments, Mom pulls away with a smile. “I’m glad my daughter found someone to love her the way that she deserves.”

  Without another word, she moves over to her purse on the edge of the counter before pulling out a set of keys. She hands them over to Dominick before pushing us towards the door leading to the garage.

  “Go. Take my car and leave here before I have to call someone. I don’t want them to find you here.” Mom stresses.

  Dominick nods and then walks out into the garage while Kane lifts me in his arms to carry me.

  He stops in front of my mother.

  Mom reaches out to touch my cheek. “I’m sorry, my sweet girl. I love you. I always will.”

  “I love you too, Mom.” I breathe out.

  She smiles and then pushes Kane towards the car while Dominick gets into the driver’s seat.

  Once we’re in the car, she hits the button to raise the garage door. Dominick doesn’t hesitate to back the car up before speeding down the road and away from my mother.

  “Do you think she’ll be alright?” Kane whispers as he holds me tightly.

  I grind my teeth together to keep from screaming out loud.

  Every move caused the poison to work its way through my body. Thanks to Loki I had learned how to slow my heartbeat. It only meant that I could buy myself some time before things got worse.

  “She’ll be fine; we just have to keep Ava from hurting herself. I have a few ideas on how to push the poison out of her blood faster. She’s not going to like it, but it's what needs to be done.” Dominick replies as he glances back at Kane and me in the backseat.

  Silence fills the car while I close my eyes and grip Kane’s hand tightly in my own.

  The pain was quickly becoming more than I could handle.

  “You might want to step on the gas, Dom.” Kane pushes.

  Dominick thankfully doesn’t hesitate to speed up.

  The sooner we got back home the sooner I could put this entire mess behind us.

  22-Kill Me Now

  Before we even had the chance to make it to Darkwell the poison had reached my heart. Kane had been forced to hold my arms behind my back in order to keep me from hurting myself.

  My screams had filled the car to the point my voice had gone hoarse.

  “Are we there yet?” Kane questions tensely as he repositions his hold on me.

  “We’re nearly there,” Dominick replies. “Just keep her arms behind her back.”

  Kane grunts in response before he whispers into my ear. “Everything is going to be alright, Sweetheart. It might seem bad now, but we’re not going to let you hurt yourself.”

  I wish I could have believed him, but right now all I could think about was the pain. It was ten times worse than what I had endured before completing the change into a vampire.

  The car comes to a stop, and Dominick opens the back door.

  Kane pulls me out before Dominick suddenly scoops me up into his arms. He runs into the building before taking me directly to the infirmary.

  He places me down on a bed while Kane rushes in with leather straps.

  Dominick holds my arms down while Kane places the straps on my wrists before connecting them to the frame of the bed.

  I scream over and over again as I fight against them.

  “Please, let me go.” I plead.

  “We’re not releasing you until this is over,” Dominick replies sternly.

  “Please, I can’t take it anymore.” I cry out.

  Tobias and a few others suddenly join us.

  “What happened?” Toby questions Dominick.

  “Her father poisoned her with his blood,” Dominick answers before nodding towards the door. “There’s a bunch of bottles in the car out front. One of those might be useful to create some kind of antidote.”

  Tobias nods and then glances towards one of the others who had come in with him.

  That person rushes out without a word.

  “What exactly happened?” Toby pushes.

  “We confronted her father. He was behind the attack.” Dominick answers.

  “And…” Toby presses.

  “He’s dead now,” Kane announces simply.

  “That doesn’t explain why Ava is strapped down to a bed. What the hell happened to get her to this point? How did she get poisoned?” Tobias snaps as he waves his hands in the air dramatically.

  His eyes turn golden as he pins Dominick with a glare.

  “She attacked her father.” Kane finally answers. “He pushed her too far, and she reacted before anyone could stop her. Her father tricked her into drinking his blood.”

  Tobias lets out a long string of curses before he begins pacing back and forth.

  As the pain once again becomes unbearable, I scream as loud as my lungs would allow. I fight against my restraints in an attempt to get to my heart.

  With every slow beat that it took, it was as if my heart was being stabbed by millions of knives.

  “Shhhh, Babe, we’ll figure this out.” Dominick tries.

  I close my eyes and shake my head.

  “Loki, I need Loki.” I cry out.

  No one says a word as I scream again.

  There wasn’t much that they could say. I wanted someone that was longer here; someone that had left me too soon.

  The pain cutting through me over his death only makes this situation worse.

  Bloody tears burn my eyes before they escape and roll down my cheeks.

  “Kane, you need to get Nix. He needs to know what’s going on.” Dominick sighs roughly. “We also need to warn everyone about this new poison. The last thing we need is this happening to anyone else.”

  “I’ll call a meeting with the town council.” Tobias states.

  The room clears out leaving me alone with Dominick and Kane.

  “I don’t want to leave her.” Kane breathes out.

  “She’ll be fine. She needs Nix here though. He would kick my ass if I didn’t tell him about this.” Dominick replies.

  Kane sighs and then moves closer to wipe away some of my tears that were still streaming down my face. He then pushes a few stray strands of my hair behind my ear.

  “I’ll be right back.” He promises.

  I nod and bite my lip in response.

  Without another word, he leaves the room.

  “Dominick, I can’t take anymore.” I pant out.

  “You can and you must. I’m not about to let you go.” He replies sternly.

  “Kill me, Dominick.” I plead.

  “No.” He growls out.

  As he moves to my side, he pulls a knife from his pocket. He then grabs my hand before placing the blade against my wrist.

  “I’m sorry, but the only way to get that poison out of your blood is to flush your blood from your body. We need to drain it and fill you with clean blood.” He explains before he cuts into my wrist.

  I scream and then pant for my breath as I watch the blood begin flowing freely to the floor.

  “Dominick, please stop.” I cry out.

  Before he can say a word, Nix and Kane rush into the room. Nix snarls and then rushes at Dominick. They fall to the floor and tumble around while trading punches.

  Kane growls out in frustration before pulling off his shirt.

  He then rushes to my side to wrap it around my still bleeding wrist.

  “What the hell were you thinking, Dominick?” Kane snaps as Nix lifts Dominick up before slamming his back against the wall.

  “I was draining the poisoned blood from her system.” Dominick answers. “When you came back I was going to have you get her some fresh blood. We can feed it to her while placing an IV into her arm.”

  “Do you really think that will work?” Nix questions him.

  “It’s worth a try.” Dominick re
plies. “I can’t stand here and watch her suffer like this.”

  Nix glances back at me for a moment before releasing Dominick.

  “If it helps her we must do what’s necessary.” He sighs.

  “Are you serious?” Kane bites out.

  “Yes,” Nix replies with a nod.

  “What if it doesn’t work?” Kane presses.

  “It will work,” Dominick replies confidently.

  Only my whimpering fills the room for a few minutes as the guys glance at each other. I would have laughed at them if I hadn't been in so much pain.

  Closing my eyes, I fight against my restraints once more.

  This time my left arm breaks free.

  I instantly begin clawing at my chest just over my heart. I scream in agony as I dig my nails deep into my skin. My nails bend and break as I draw blood.

  “Shit, hold her down,” Dominick commands while Nix races around the bed to grab my hand.

  It takes every ounce of his strength to stop me.

  I cry out and toss my head back roughly against the bed in frustration.

  “Kill me, kill me now,” I scream. “I can’t take it anymore.”

  “That’s not going to happen,” Nix replies.

  Meanwhile, Dominick pulls the shirt away from my wrist while Kane stands back watching helplessly.

  “Kane, can you get more blood?” Dominick questions gently.

  “Yeah, I can.” Kane breathes out before turning to leave.

  He glances back at me once before exiting the room.

  “This is going to rough on him,” Nix states as he looks at Dominick.

  “It’s not going to be easy for any of us,” Dominick replies.

  I grind my teeth and glare up at both of them.

  They go silent for a few moments while the world around me suddenly blurs. My eyes burn as they fill with more bloody tears.

  “Babe, pass out if you can. You won’t be in as much pain if you do.” Dominick pushes.

  His face blurs and is suddenly replaced by Loki’s. I smile up at him and then pull my hand away from Nix. I raise it up and touch his cheek.

  “I love you, Loki,” I whisper.

  Moments later my hand falls as everything goes dark.

  ****