First Bite (Darkwood Manor Series) Page 4

I grab a blood bag and frown. I only have three more left to last me two more days. At the rate I am drinking them, I will run out tomorrow. I whimper thinking about what I will do. Before, when we were out it wasn’t a problem, but now that I am craving someone, it is.

  I don’t want to hurt or attack Jason, or anyone else. I don’t want to be a monster. I move to my bed and lay down. I want to try and rest before I see Jason again. I need to gain control of my hunger. I sluggishly close my eyes, and will myself to fall asleep.

  When I was a kid my dad would bring me to our special place. It was a dark brown wood cabin in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by thick woods, and a large deep blue lake. That is where I am. I know I am dreaming because I can see the shimmering glow I normally see when my father visits me in my dreams. He hasn’t done this in a while, and I wonder why he wants to now.

  Every time I fall asleep I wonder if I will see him. I have nearly given up on him showing himself to me. I can’t dreamscape because I’m not strong enough yet.

  “Victoria Marie,” my father’s familiar voice says. He has always called me that, ever since I could remember. “You have grown to a beautiful young woman…besides your pink hair.” I smile, and turn to face my scowling father.

  I did my hair like this because I knew mother wouldn’t like it. I love it, but he would think it was childish.

  “You don’t have a say what you like and don’t like about me. Why did you bring me here, father?”

  He narrows his eyes at me. “Now that is no way to speak to me. I am your father, and you show me respect.” His voice has gone cold.

  I laugh and arch an eyebrow at him. “I don’t respect you. You left me.”

  “Victoria Marie, I left because I couldn’t live by what your mother wanted me to. I don’t like the blood bags. We are vampires, we are meant to drink from the vein and kill,” he says, and smiles viciously at me. “I see you have found, le sang qui chante.” I am thankful I had to take French for three years. Blood that sings is what he said to me.

  I want to know what he knows, and how he could tell. “What do you mean?”

  “Oh my beautiful, clueless daughter; his blood is like a drug for you. You want it like no other. I am surprised your mother left you after she saw you react to him.” He smirks at me. “I had found my le sang qui chante many years ago, and I drained her to the very last drop. I looked down at her, and knew I wanted to keep her forever. I had her beautiful red hair tangled in my hands, and her bright blue eyes staring at me in horror. I changed her, and she was mine. We killed together, until thirty years ago.” I know he is talking about my mother. “She wanted to have children, and go to college to become a physician. I told her I wanted children, but was confused as to why she wanted to be a physician. She told me that she wanted to save people not kill them anymore.”

  My father looks past me to the cabin. “I would have done almost anything for your mother. I even gave up blood, and drank from her take-out bags. Victoria, I didn’t want to leave you and your mother, but you don’t know the whole story. I just hope that one day when the truth is out you will forgive me and your mother. I do love you more than you will ever know.”

  I feel my cheeks wet and sticky from my falling tears. “Dad—”

  He puts his hand up to stop me from talking. “I do want your forgiveness but not now, not until you know everything. I also wanted to tell you that there is a hunter after me; I guess I killed someone he loved. So please watch yourself. If anything feels strange trust it, and get away.”

  My father moves closer to me, and wraps me in his arms. In dream-scaping, I can feel him, and he can feel me. It feels nice to be hugged by my dad. I have missed him.

  I wake up gasping for air, my father came to me. I know I should call my mother and tell her that he showed up. She has been asking me if he has, and up until now he hasn’t. He told me that there is a hunter after him, and I’m not too shocked. He lives off of fresh human blood, and he enjoys killing.

  Just like I want to do to Jason, he told me that Jason’s blood sings to me. Just like my mother’s blood did for him. I have always known that my father was a pure vampire, he came from a long line of vampires, and my mother was a turned vampire. Since I was born a vampire, I am more pure than a turned.

  If I have a baby with a pure vampire, then that baby will be a pure blooded vampire. But if I have a baby with a turned, then the baby would be normal, and I would have to decide if I want to change them when they are older. Humans can’t impregnate me, it’s just impossible. Their DNA can’t mix with ours.

  I glance at the clock and am amazed. It’s eleven thirty, and I have thirty minutes until I meet Jason. I smile and get out of bed. I look down to my cooler and shudder. I only have two left, but I know I need one now if I want to be with Jason, and if I want to kiss him.

  Chapter Six

  First Bite

  I walk out of the mansion, and head to the lake. I can feel my heart racing, and can’t wait to have Jason’s scent wrap around me. I speed up my pace to get there a little faster. If I wanted to, I could be there in the blink of an eye. But I don’t want to explain to anyone why I can run so fast.

  I get to the lake and grin at the curly black haired boy. Jason has his back to me looking out on the lake, and I walk up behind him quietly. When I am close enough I wrap my arms around his waist and kiss his shoulder.

  I grin when I feel his hands settle on top of mine. “I have missed you,” he says, and I can feel my heart melting for him.

  I have missed him too, maybe too much. “Is that so? I am pretty unforgettable.” I can feel his laughter, and I smirk.

  “That you are.” He brings his hands up to my face and leans his forehead against mine… “How is it you take my breath away every time I look at you?” I can feel my blush burning my face. A loud growling noise comes from behind me. I take my face away from his and quickly turn around. The myths about werewolf bites being fatal to vampires are actually real, unlike the sun myth. One bite will kill me.

  “Get behind me,” Jason says, and I glance at him shaking my head.

  A large black werewolf leaps out of the woods. His yellow eyes turn to me with slobber dripping from its fanged mouth. I swear it smiles at me.

  “What do we have here…a night child?” a rumbling male voice says, and I shiver. The wolf turns its head to Jason and narrows his eyes. I don’t think about what I do next. I hurl myself at the wolf, and hear Jason screaming my name.

  I push as hard as I can on the werewolf’s shoulders, and he goes flying into a tree; the tree shook with the force of the impact. Slowly I watch the wolf get back to his four legs, and his yellow eyes glare at me. The black wolf shakes himself and lowers his head, but keeps his glowing yellow eyes on me.

  “You stupid, stupid night child. You know what my bite will do to you, don’t you?” he asks as he moves closer to me, and I allow my aching gums to free my fangs. I smile at the wolf.

  “I do,” I say, not waiting to look at Jason. “But I won’t let you hurt him. He is mine,” I say and glance over at Jason. He has his eyes narrowed on me and the wolf.

  That is when the werewolf decides to attack me. I feel the heat radiating from the strong jaws of the beast as he is only inches from my face. My father told me that even if the werewolf saliva gets into my mouth I could die from it. The wolf moves his face closer to me, and I scream.

  He laughs and digs his sharp claws into my arms. I look at each arm that is being pinned down by him, and my blood has already started to soak into the dirt.

  All of a sudden the wolf is off of me, and Jason is standing over us with a silver dagger in his hands. The werewolf is bleeding from where Jason must have stabbed him.

  The wolf looks back at me and smiles then looks back at Jason. “How sweet. A vampire hunter saving a vampire.”

  My heart speeds up as I look at Jason. He is a hunter? Our eyes meet for only a second but it’s enough to catch the shock in his amazing green eyes.

&n
bsp; Jason lunges forward at the werewolf and it’s like a dance. One move’s left and the other follows. The werewolf avoids the blade. I stand frozen until the werewolf slams his large head into Jason, causing him to lose his dagger.

  Jason looks up to me as if saying good bye. I shake my head and run as fast as I can to where they have fallen. I throw myself in front of Jason and I scream as the wolf sinks his sharp teeth into my chest. His saliva trickles into my body and I hold back my scream it feels as if my blood is scalding me. All that matters to me is that I saved Jason.

  The wolf makes a loud noise and I fall to the ground. I can’t move anything it’s like the bite paralyzed me, and my heart is beating so fast I think it might beat out of my chest.

  Jason’s beautiful face hovers above me. “You’re a vampire?”

  I want to tell him I am sorry, and I should have told him. But my mouth won’t move. I can’t speak. I start coughing and turn my head to the side, and cough up blood on the sand. I look back at Jason and he shakes his head as he takes off his jacket.

  He pushes up his sleeve, and I know what he wants me to do. I close my eyes as I feel my first bloody tears fall from my eyes. “Victoria, drink from me.”

  I can feel his bared skin against my arm, and I can smell him but I don’t do anything. “Please. My blood will save you.”

  I gradually open my eyes, and I see him. Jason looks worried, and he shoves his wrist harder against my lips, unsurprisingly my fangs are still out. I thought they would retract when I was bitten.

  “Please I can’t watch you die, drink or I will slit my wrist for you.”

  I lick my lips and kiss his wrist gently. I push my fangs into his wrist, and he moans. I keep my eyes on his, as his sweet warm blood enters my mouth, now it’s my turn to moan. I was right. He tastes better that the finest chocolates in the world. I suck at his wrist and his other hand goes to my cheek, as his blood pours down my throat.

  I pull away from his wrist before I take too much, I don’t even know if I got enough blood but I don’t care. I don’t want to drain him.

  Jason moves away from me taking his sweet caring hand away from my face. I am pretty sure he hates me now. I am what he hunts and kills.

  I take a deep breath and slowly sit up. I can see him sitting about ten feet away from me. He has his head in his hands, and he is sobbing.

  “Jason,” I say, and I can hear my own heart break in my voice. But he doesn’t move or say anything. I just watch his body shake with his tears. “Please talk to me,” I say and leisurely he lifts his head to look at me. I was right he was crying. Tears left his cheeks shinning in the moon light.

  “What is there to say? I took a vow to kill every vampire I meet. I am bound to kill you, and if I do, I would be killing myself. I can’t believe I fell in love with a vampire.”

  He says vampire like it’s a filthy word.

  I stand up and can feel my knees wobble. Slowly I walk over to him, I glance down at myself. The wolf torn most of my shirt off, I drop to my knees in front of him. I grab his hand and with my other hand I grab his dagger. Even when it burns me I put it in his hands. Then, I put the tip of the silver dagger to my bared skin. I hiss when it burns me, he tries to pull away but I don’t let him.

  “I rather you kill me than have you disgusted with me. You are the only one to have fallen in love. I love you, and I can’t handle you looking at me like I am dog poop on the bottom of your shoe,” I say and stare into his green eyes. I can see new tears forming, and he closes his eyes.

  “I won’t kill you,” he says and when he opens his eyes a few tears fall, “but we can’t be together. If the other hunters found out I am with a vampire, they will kill you and me.”

  My heart stops. I let go of his hand and his dagger falls between us. We can’t be together, keeps playing in my head.

  “Victoria, there will be no one else I will ever love like I love you. We will just have to go to school, and live together. If I call the other hunters and ask to leave, they will know something is up.” He stands up and looks down at me.

  Forcing myself to look away from his intense stare, I look at the beautiful lake and the fireflies that are flying barely above the water again. Hearing him walk away makes my heart shatter with every step he takes away from me.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One Boarding School

  Chapter Two Surprise

  Chapter Three Midnight Meeting

  Chapter Four Muse

  Chapter Five The Dream

  Chapter Six First Bite