::CHAPTER 8::

I sat in the cyber conference room waiting patiently for the others to log on. This meeting was long overdue. Loki was told to make sure that no one disturbed me for the next hour. The bedroom door was locked and the curtains were drawn. I sat at the desk with the computer opened before me.

The little projector lens on the back of the laptop threw a series of holographic images around the room. Dozens of human leaders sat around me in hologram form. Each represented a different country. I took in the faces and mannerisms of them all. Quirky creatures. Every region had a different look about them; the up-tilting of the eyes or the complexion of the skin, the textures of their hair or the accents. They were all diverse but we had one thing in common. We wanted power.

The ones who were present were beginning to get agitated. I stared at each of them over steepled fingers. I’ve had a long time to learn patience. Most had only half a lifetime to pretend they knew what patience was. There were only three empty seats around us but I was certain their owners would show. I would not start without them.

“The others are clearly late and I have another meeting to get to in a bit. Could we hurry this along?” one of the holographic figures spoke up, “We could give them a recap later on. I motion that we start without them.” My eyes narrowed at him and he fell silent before lowering his hand. I sat up, if possible, even straighter in my seat. Holding him under my gaze, I didn’t reply for a long while. I let the tension build as they waited for me to say something. Anything to break the pin-dropping silence. Those who were about to agree with the man held their tongues; afraid to as much as cough.

I was not my father. I did not do motions or votes or ballots. They didn’t know me or what to expect. Rumors had no doubt spread among these men and women before today. They would try to test me to see what I would allow and what I wouldn’t stand for. They were like a class of children with their new substitute teacher. They have no clue how big a change is about to come their way.

“Does anyone here want to second that motion?” I asked. My gaze remained on the offensive little man. No one spoke. “Motion overruled. This motion and any other motion proposed after this one.” My eyes never left him and I felt his unease grow along with everyone else’s in the room. Turning my attention to each and every one of them, I saw some of them flinch in turn. “We cannot hurry this up because we are three persons short. Until those persons are present,” I glanced at the man once again, “we will not proceed. Reschedule any prior engagements if necessary. There will be no recaps because I do not repeat myself. We will wait. Patience is expected until I say otherwise.”

The man excused himself and left to make a call. The tips of my fingers resumed their steeple and I went back to surveying my audience. Hologram technology was far more advanced than it had been a few years ago. These weren’t flickering light images that could be clearly told apart from reality. These appeared to be real persons sitting around me. It was as three dimensional as I was.

One after the other, the three empty seats were filled and the man who’d left on the phone call reclaimed his seat. “Glad you could join us,” I said to the late-comers and I noted the blush spreading across one woman’s cheekbones. I tried to take the condescending tone out of my next few words. Humans seemed extra sensitive to it.

“Now that everyone’s here, we can begin,” I said and flashed a smile, “Don’t forget to turn on your voice translators.”

“Great,” Japan said, “I have to know, why are we all here? It seems as though no one knows.”

“And I’d bet anything that you asked everyone at this conference. Am I right, Ayame?” Germany said with a little smile.

“I wanted to be prepared,” he responded.

“That’s fine,” I said interrupting Germany’s teasing, “I called you all here to discuss what’s going to happen now that my father has passed.”

Again they got sidetracked. These damn humans can’t ever focus on one thing at a time. Trying not to betray my annoyance I sat through a long list of them telling me ‘I’m sorry for your loss’ and ‘My condolences’ and all the other things people say when loved ones die. My irritation probably leaked into my expression because one look at my face and the voices trailed off.

“I’m not grieving. You don’t have to pretend to toe around the subject. He’s dead and I am not wallowing in sorrow. Let us move on.”

“Hmph,” Africa threw me a filthy look, “That is your father. Your parent. He should be cherished not tossed aside in his passing.”

“Are you trying to make me feel guilty? You waste your breath, sir. You can miss him on your own time,” I replied, “but we’re all very busy here. The rest of us happen to be important people with important issues to discuss.”

I separated the folders on the desk and read from one. “As I was trying to say before, we have an odd situation on our hands. Immortals, by definition, rarely die. My father’s passing has undoubtedly been unforeseen and unplanned for. He’s generally the man behind the scenes so you are used to taking orders from him. You’ve all had years working under him so you are all used to the way things work under his leadership.” Murmurs of agreement flitted around the room. I went on. “The eldest of my bloodline has always been the puppeteer.”

Some frowns. They didn’t seem to like the analogy of them being our puppets. Ahh well. It can’t be helped. Even Pinocchio liked to think himself a real boy. “No one made a move without his knowledge or consent,” I explained the analogy further. “I suppose that you’ve had to take over the reins lately?” I asked. Everyone voiced their agreement again but they had clearly enjoyed their moment of independence. “Well then that officially ends today. I am taking over from my father as next of living kin and eldest living immortal who is not Asleep.” The room went silent again.

These were the leaders of the world and in our world the leaders were ruled by the oldest living being. The oldest living being was once my father who had lived for thousands of years before making me. Compared to him I am but a toddler.

In my father’s time, there were the Elders who were as old as him if not older. The Elders had seen the rise of civilizations and the building of the pyramids and the construction of the Wonders of the World. Many had lived for millennia and ruled great empires. In their fight for power, they died in wars centuries before. There are no more Elders remaining on earth.

There were the Sleepers though. They are slightly younger than the Elders but still saw more years than could be imagined. They are ancient immortals who found themselves weary of the changing world. They mourned the dead ancient cities like Athens and Ancient Rome, unable to bear looking at what their world had become.

The next eldest beings were my Maker’s children. He was off the very few Elders who had bothered enough with humans to Change them and keep them as companions. To watch over them and take responsibility for them. Like children. That made the eldest beings me, Loki and my now deceased siblings. With all the others out of the equation and Loki being the baby of the family, the leaders should have known what the next move would be.

I suppose sometimes when something is so horrible, humans put it to the back of their minds and hope that a miracle would happen to change it. I watched their bubbles of hope pop.

I didn’t say anything. It was always best to let people come to terms with bad news without hassling them. They were in shock after living in denial for this long. Perhaps they’d hoped for a missing child to reappear and take over. Or maybe that my Maker, the five thousand year old immortal, would return from the grave. No one here liked my father but without a doubt they preferred him over me.

My father had been an indifferent man. He was too experienced in life to pay attention to humans and taught me the indifference I felt for them today. He had grown bored with life, with blood, with money, with power, with love, with lust. He had grown bored with anything worth living for. He had been pulled into so many lifetimes that his features were far from human. They were hardly even immortal.

His skin was near translucent and his hair unnaturally dark for his complexion. His eyes were as black as if his pupils had expanded into his irises. He never blinked and he rarely spoke. Whenever he did it was wise and you felt unworthy to hear such intelligence. The man had been far more frightening than I could ever be with the cruelest smile. He was once a powerful aristocrat and had that dangerously old world way of commanding respect; from his clothes to his goatee to his sharp cheekbones to his gentleman’s hat and cane.

He had seen empires rise and fall and wars rage on for decades. He had seen too much to be bothered with petty, human problems. Of course, they never thought it was petty. Four or five decades were not enough to know the world, but try to tell them that.

“I don’t mean any disrespect—.”

“Which is what one says before saying something disrespectful,” I put in, “I assume that there is a ‘but’ in there somewhere?”

“Yes,” he looked at his peers, “Like I was saying, I don’t mean any disrespect but I’ve heard some rumors going around about you.”

“Whatever you might have heard, whether or not it’s true, is not going to change the fact that I’m taking over from my father. You all might as well accept that. Any problems you might have can’t undo that. It is law. International law. Passed by human and immortal alike.”

“But are they true?”

“How could I know? You didn’t say what the rumor was. But it’s not time to talk about rumors now. This isn’t high school. We don’t have time for gossip and who said what about whom and who’s taking who to the prom. We have business to discuss sir, act like it,” I changed the topic before he got a chance to go on. He appeared to be mildly ruffled but he didn’t make any move to restart the talk about rumors.

The meeting went well enough. They were a bit shocked to hear that I intended to make my identity known to the public as the voice behind the leaders. I think they figured that soon enough they would be irrelevant and it was true. The leaders had been the mask that other immortal leaders before me hid behind. Now that I was making my identity public knowledge, there was no real use for them.

Usually I would have turned on the charm and lied my way into their trust. They would have trusted me with their lives if I wanted them to. I could be warm and sweet and friendly if the situation called for it. They’d be eating out of my hand. From the beginning I would have put them at ease with a grin and some chit chat about something relevant yet idle and possibly work a joke in here or there. The point wasn’t to put them at ease however. Why bother when they already had no choice but to do as I said?

This was a law established centuries ago by humans and immortals alike. It was a part of our Constitution so I knew that it could not be so easily changed. Long ago, it became apparent that humans were not meant to rule over their kind and were even more inept at ruling over my kind. They had limited experience with life and so they were more susceptible to prejudice, corruption, biased ideas, and just about everything else you could think of. They were too young to control a world so old. Eventually it was thought that they should be overseen and ruled by a person who was learned in the ways of the world…immortals. The eldest of the world in particular.

I need to organize a televised appearance. To make it official. Then I need to go visit my guys on the base and have them transferred to the island. “So much to do,” I sighed happily. The meeting had long ended so the bedroom door was unlocked and the word had gotten around that I was free again.

The maid had already come in to tidy a few moments before. She had long, dark hair that reminded me a lot of Caroline. Speaking of which, I probably should call her soon. We have to talk about this little lovers and friends relationship she claims we had.

Rummaging around in my bag, I retrieved the napkin. I pulled my cell out of my pocket and unfolded the paper. After dialing the number, I sat in the chair and waited for the ringing to stop. A while had passed and just as I thought that maybe she wouldn’t pick up, there was a click and the ringing stopped.

“Yeah?” was the distracted reply.

“Hey it’s—.”

“Al! Hi. I was wondering when you would pick up a phone and call me,” she said. Al? She calls me Al? It was unsettling and so mortal at the same time.

“I – er – yes it’s…Al,” the unfamiliar name made me frown, “I didn’t think you were going to pick up.”

“Oh yes, right. I was washing my hair. I actually was going to ignore the ringing and just call back later, but something told me to go get the phone. Good thing I went with my gut,” she said and I could practically see her grin. Samuel would like her. She was running the conversation too well to leave room for me to manipulate her. “Wow…your memory really is messed up.”

“Meaning?”

“No need to get defensive. Relax. It’s just that every time I brought up my famous gut instincts, you griped about how people think with their brains not their stomachs. I almost missed that.” Now I sensed a frown.

“You sound more human than immortal.”

“Well unlike some people, I change with the times. I adapt. Not that there was anything wrong with the old world way of talking but it’s so time consuming, don’t you think? I mean humans shorten everything these days. It’s cool.”

“Did you just say cool?” I raised a brow.

“Lower that eyebrow of yours,” she chuckled and I gave a cautious sweep with my eyes around the room, “You have to adapt to survive sometimes…besides, I kind of like the word.”

“You are a queer woman. I…don’t know what to make of you,” I admitted.

“You never did. It’s what fascinated you in the first place if I remember correctly,” she chuckled, “How come you’re calling all of a sudden? You never do anything unless there’s a reason behind it.”

“I haven’t changed much have I?”

“Nope. Not really,” she said and I heard the snap of a can being opened, “So spill. What’s the reason?”

“It’s not just you that I can’t remember. I can’t remember any of my human life. I’m hoping that you can help me remember.”

“You’re a lucky guy to happen across me then. A very very lucky guy. I am probably the best person to help you remember your past. We can meet up for a drink or something and talk and whatever. We’ll see if we can get that memory of yours back. Because I’ll be damned if you forget me of all people,” she said, “When are you free?”

“Tomorrow’s good for me. We’ll have dinner and catch up. How’s nine?”

“Perfect. Do you have a DataPod on you now?”

“I prefer pen and paper.”

“No comment,” stark amusement in her tone, “Here’s my address.”

As she called it out I scribbled it onto the notepad. It turns out that while she was visiting her uncle in my city, she lived in Bvendini like many immortals who preferred the light. A knock came at the door and I turned to see Samuel coming inside. I said my goodbyes and ended the call. Samuel had a stupid grin on his face, “Was that Caroline? She sounds cute.”

“Grow up, Sam.” I typed the address into my phone, “What are you? Seventy?”

“So it was her,” he laughed, “What’s she like?”

“…perplexing. I can see why I was once friends with her. She’s fascinating but so perplexing. It’s like she’s a human trapped in an immortal’s body.”

“We’re all humans trapped in an immortal body.”

“You know what I mean. She’s probably as old as I am and she acts as if she was Changed in this century. She says ‘cool’.”

“Cool?” Samuel looked confused, “Like temperature?”

“No. Like that car is so cool.”

“Hmm…” Sam blinked at the phone on the table, “Cool. Has that word always been around?”

“I think it’s pretty new. Just came about a few decades ago if I’m not mistaken.”

“Oh. Is it one of those things the young kids say these days?” Sam asked.

“Who knows? I found it online on Urban Dictionary,” I said.

“Is that even a real dictionary?”

I shrugged. Who on earth could keep track of the new world slang? I cursed the day music channels were born. The VH1s and MTVs and BETs of the past had changed everything and made way for all the other music channels that were around now. I didn’t have the time to keep up.

Samuel on the other hand had too much time on his hands. He insisted on gossiping for almost an hour. The conversation with Caroline had only lasted a few minutes but he wanted to know everything about her. It didn’t matter that I barely knew anything about the woman. He seemed to relish the idea that I had been both a friend and a lover to this odd woman. There was just no stopping him once he got started.

******************************

{3rd Person POV}

Ana sat outside in the gardens with her younger sister in the morning sun. They both did their assignments without a word. She was working on her latest piece for her college Art class while Ria sat beside her doing a ‘History of the Pantomime’ paper for her Drama course. Both preferred to work outdoors and favored the little creaking bench that sat in the middle of a grassy patch. From there you could see the flourishing trees and flowers and the little butterflies and bees that often flitted about.

Ana’s eyes were trained on a hummingbird that moved with wicked speed. She wanted to draw the bird but it never stayed still long enough for her to even start a sketch. Ria, on the other hand, had her eyes closed with her head tilted back. She took in the aroma of nectar and grass wafting around them in the light breeze while feeling the smooth blades skimming between her toes.

Ria’s DataPod was left unattended on the bench as she took a well deserved break. The screen still showed what she’d written along with the website that she’d gotten the information on. The touch screen device was shaped like a large, oval pill and had all of the capabilities of an expensive laptop, video projector, organizer and flash drive all in one with unlimited memory. Every inch of it was touch sensitive and could work two full days with one charge. It had powerful internal speakers, microphones, voice activation and fingerprint identity recognition.

“So have you gotten that autograph from your boyfriend’s brother yet?” Ria asked rolling her small, aching shoulders. She opened a single, azure eye that was absolutely dancing with mischief. Ana’s cheeks colored at the teasing words. She looked at her sister whose expression was the epitome of innocence. “Loki is my Master not my boyfriend. Would you stop going on about that. He has ridiculously good hearing. The last thing I need is him overhearing you,” she signed before looking over her shoulder.

Ria smirked and closed her eye again. She flicked a lock of red hair off her forehead so that the sun could warm her too fair skin. Ana looked at her pretty little sister and felt a smile creep onto her face. She was the baby of the family and the only living relative she had left. She loved her more than anything and the feeling was mutual.

They were always there for each other though Ria did not belong to Loki. She didn’t live in the mansion with her sister but she visited every few months when Loki allowed it. Her visits always warmed Ana’s heart no matter how short they were. She enjoyed babying Ria and giving her everything she asked for. The sweet natured girl was beloved by everyone she came into contact with. It was an instant reaction with most people. Ria had a soft spot for children and was the type who would help a complete stranger. Despite that, she had a backbone of steel and a fiery tongue. People always assumed that Ria was older because Ana tended to shy away from attention leaving Ria to take charge. Ana was as sweet as Ria but without the temper and feisty mouth.

“Why does it matter if he overhears you? The man is horrible.”

“No he isn’t. I mean he’s not the nicest guy, but horrible? How many Masters allow outsiders into his home? You come to stay all the time.”

“That’s one good thing about him…cuteness aside,” she scoffed, “The man murdered his family, Ana. Horrible was a compliment.”

“We have no proof of that.”

Ria made a very unladylike noise in the back of her throat. “Well clearly Loki walks on water in your eyes,” she muttered before sitting up, “I want to go out for ice-cream. Let’s go ask him if you can leave for a few hours.” Ria’s eyes were two big orbs of endless blue that made it damn hard for her sister to deny her.

Ana had asked to leave the property twice for the week already and she didn’t want to push her luck. But with Ria at her side, she was sure that Loki would say yes. The other girl could charm a snake out of his basket without blowing a note on a flute.

They climbed to the third floor of the mansion and went to the master bedroom. The large double doors towered above them. Neither girl was taller than five feet five inches which made the room more intimidating as the door touched the ceiling. They shared a glance but neither made a move. In the end Ria was the one to hit a small fist to the door . The soft knock seemed to echo in the empty hallways. “Maybe we should have waited until later,” Ana glanced at her sister, “He’s probably still asleep.”

“Come in,” he called in a raspy voice.

“I guess not,” Ria smiled and opened the twin doors.

Both stopped in their tracks with their smiles falling as they entered. Loki had clearly been woken up. The light cast every inch of his body in high relief so that it was impossible for him to not be the first thing you saw. He was lying on a bed of white wearing nothing but a pair of black and grey underwear. Underwear that was not of the loose boxers kind. Loki was a man who’d been alive far too long to find any shame in nudity. So having his body on display when he was actually wearing underwear wasn’t awkward at all for him. He was alone in that feeling at the moment.

He noticed the red in Ria’s face as she excused herself and left. He had guessed that the girl – who planned to join a nunnery someday – was still a virgin but he hadn’t imagined that her innocence went so far that she couldn’t be in a room with a half naked man. He watched her close the doors behind her. His attention then fell onto Ana who was forcing her eyes to remain on his face out of respect.

“Did you want something?” he asked voice skill husky with sleep.

“Yeah. I mean yes.”

“What was it?” he pressed when she didn’t continue.

“I wanted permission to leave the grounds for a few hours.”

“Reason?”

“Ria wanted to go out into the town.”

“For?”

“Ice cream.”

“Are you two going alone or are you taking someone with you?” his eyes narrowed.

“Alone. Kyle is on kitchen duties today,” she added seeing the unanswered question.

He nodded. “Fine. Three hours maximum. Request Granted,” he replied. She beamed. It was a generous timeline for an ice-cream run but she wasn’t going to say anything to make him take away an hour.

Kyle was one of the many people who worked for Loki and the older vampire had made it blatantly clear to everyone that he hated the boy. Kyle was known for getting around and that didn’t sit well with Loki. The immortal was a man who liked peace and quiet, which was hard to come by when Kyle left a constant trail of weeping girls in his wake.

Loki didn’t take it well when he heard that Kyle had used his off-grounds hours to take Ana out on an actual date. Over the last year, Loki and Ana had created a strange kind of friendship and now he found that he was sort of fond of her. Fond enough for him not to want her to join Kyle’s harem of weeping females. Fortunately she hadn’t. The two were just friends now but Loki understood human boys. ‘Just friends’ didn’t mean that the boy wouldn’t try again. Her voice interrupted his train of thought.

“Use the time well. Get your shopping done and buy whatever it is you spend your salary on because this is the last of your off-grounds hours until the next rotation,” he said and scratched at his hair.

“Thank you. Do you need to feed before I leave?” she asked, “I can bring someone up…or would you prefer me since I’m already here?”

“You can do it if you don’t mind. Save you the trip.”

“Of course not.”

She went outside and told Ria to wait for her downstairs while Loki fed. Her sister didn’t complain but shrugged it off and bounded downstairs. Ana shut the door again and turned to see him still lying where she’d left him. Then suddenly he wasn’t there anymore.

She didn’t see him move, but he had left his place on the pillows and was now sitting at the edge of the bed. She tilted her head and raised a brow before righting her head again. His gaze fell on the neck that was bared for him seconds before and he smiled. A rare smile. Genuine.

Hazel eyes were now trained on a vein in her neck that only he could see. He swallowed as his throat went dry, but he didn’t lunge. Ana noted the hunger in his eyes. The bloodlust. The slow intake of breath from someone who was under the strictest control. He wet his lower lip waiting for her to come to him. This was not a hunt. She would not be attacked. She was under his care and protection in his house. He wouldn’t harm her any more than it could be helped. He would feed only to temporarily sate his nagging morning thirst and then she would leave. He would not feed to kill. Until she came to him, he would not move a muscle and he wouldn’t provoke the predator in his nature. A nature he was fighting simply by remaining seated.

She wasn’t afraid. She had been the first time, but not anymore. A year had passed. There was trust between them now. He knew that she was putting her life in his hands and she was aware that he was doing his hardest not to kill her simply because he wanted to keep her alive. He was good to her – better than most Masters out there – and so she would return the favor the one way she could; by offering a drink.

Walking closer to him, his attention was solely on the neck that was growing nearer. His jaw clenched but he didn’t move otherwise. She came to him and stood still, waiting for him to choose a site to drink from. He had long chosen his preferred site. Loki tore his eyes from her jugular for a moment to meet the willing, green eyes. No fear was in them. Keeping that display of faith in mind, he reached for her shirt and tugged her closer. It was an almost playful tug and she smiled across at him. She was short enough for them to be eye-to-eye while he sat on the elevated bed.

His fingers closed around her neck and he angled it so that it arched for him. His hold was gentle. His thumb ran down the length of the blue vein that pulsed with life in her. He tasted the venom that burned his gums and filled his incisors. He would not Change her. That wasn’t the plan. It was natural instinct to release the venom into the person but he made sure that he was under control before lowering his head to the bared skin.

Ana waited for the familiar sting and…there it was. Teeth sank into soft flesh and his hand tightened around the throat in a hold that was utter ownership. A Master’s hold. The endorphins that came from the bite spread to every corner of her body and unfurled in her stomach. It unlocked a desperate neediness that craved only him because the endorphins came from him. The tightness in her chest relaxed and he sank his teeth in deeper. It was a slow drink and she appreciated him taking his time. Taking a little at a time.

That hand around her neck pulled her closer so that they were chest to chest. Another burst of endorphins spread through her system and suddenly her skin felt stretched too tight over her body. Sensitive. She was sensitive to the thumb stroking the length of her throat. She was very aware of the second hand curved around her naked thigh. She felt every bit of the bare chest rubbing against the cloth that covered her own. She felt warm. Dressed in far too much clothes.

She couldn’t see his face, but she knew that his eyes were closed. That his expression was satisfied. That his lips were pressed to the hot skin stretched across her neck. That his nose kept her scent close. She knew without seeing.

Loki pulled her even closer to his body. His need for contact was far more intense than her own. The sexual fire was being fanned between them without any true intimate touching. Her body straddled him before she’d even noticed that he’d lifted her with a single hand.

The hard demand of the man before her brushed against an intimate place that was all too willing to accept him inside her. The feminine heat between her thighs was damp and inviting and wanted nothing more than to have him brush against her again. Gripping muscled shoulders in much smaller hands, she rocked against the single part of him that pulsed with its own fire. Even with his lips to her neck she felt his intake of breath. He removed his mouth and licked the wound. That sinful tongue travelling against her neck caused a shiver to run through her.

He raised the thin, cotton dress and ran a finger down the hottest part of her core. It was torturous. It was slow. It was very Loki. A cry fell from her lips before he kissed the breath from that same protesting mouth. Tongues abandoned, he needed only his lips to bring her quite literally to her knees. She rocked against his body once again, trying her hardest to remove some tension in her body. A rough hand cupped the soft weight of her breast, molding and squeezing until her back arched into the pleasure-touch that reminded her exactly how long this immortal had been given to learn that skill.

Her toes curled and her mind blanked, too bombarded with satisfaction to think. She hoped upon hope that he would take her soon. The wait was too much. As if hearing her thoughts he ran a hand down the flat of her stomach and over the peach lace that hid the dark heat of her. She grumbled inwardly wishing she could feel skin to skin. Again, it was as though he’d heard her. Pushing the damp, now transparent material aside he sipped on the sweet metallic blood from her neck as she tensed. He nipped and sucked on the bruised flesh as a finger slipped into her and past silken folds to a place that left her blinded at his swift strokes. A gasp left her. It was one thing to want but something entirely different to actually be put into a sensual haven by Loki Cortada.

He needed only that single finger and a constant rhythm to bring her to a climax that belonged only in the most debauched of wet dreams. Before she could catch her breath, before she could beg for another round, she was flipped onto her back and exposed in the most basic way. He placed her leg onto his shoulder and was about to truly do the deed when she, unconsciously, stroked his arm.

Something in that touch got through to him. He froze in the haze of a feed that had gone long past it’s allotted time. He stared at the woman who he was so clearly taking advantage of. This was not consensual. She wanted him because he had poured more endorphins in her than it was healthy for anyone to have. It was a side effect of feeding. A side effect that didn’t always happen but that he could get a hold of when it did. He would push away his host most of the time and other times he would simply stop far ahead of time.

He was disgusted with himself. There were immortal rape laws against this and here he was about to shove himself into this girl whose body had no say in what it wanted. He got off of her and pulled her from his bed and onto her feet. She swayed on the spot.

“What’s wrong?” she signed still somewhat on a high, “Did I do something?”

“You didn’t. I did. Go get yourself cleaned up and go find your sister. I made an unforgivable mistake and I apologize,” he said and kissed the back of her hand in a very old world fashion, “Forgive me, please.”

Before she could say another word, he ushered her out of the room and closed the door behind him. He massaged his temples and walked back to his bed. “Wonderful. Now the bloody sheets smell like her,” he grumbled and let out a black word, “If I could die I’d be going to hell for this.”

***************************

VOTE

COMMENT

FAN

AND STUFF

So umm.....I trolled a little in the end heh. I'm sorry I'm sorry. I tend to do that sometimes lol. My bad. Well yeah. This upload came a little late but I had some writer's block on other stories (even though I planned it all out) and that just took up some time.

And then my characters for all my stories started to misbehave all at the same time. Some refuse to like the people I picked for them and some keep flirting with the wrong ones and one of them just went changed sexual orientations and I have to convince him that he's freakin straight. SMH I love em I do but they're giving me grey hairs. It's chaos in my mind now.