Within The Shadows (8 page)

“
What do you mean?”

“
Consider how I could have ripped your throat out, and drank
you dry. Instead, I sit here, and amuse you with my answers. There
is a war, and you play a vital role. You should have realised by
now that you are a very important commodity among vampires. You
possess what others seek, and it is you who will strengthen the
bloodline. We will evolve because of you.”

“
Yeah, so Alex keeps telling me, but I can’t help but to
wonder as to how this whole mess started. Why are all of you so
afraid of the Nelapsi, or whatever they’re called?”

He pondered
this before he spoke, looking at me intently, as though he was
about to reveal some deadly secret, and then he began his
story.

“
I was born
more than two centuries ago in a small village in the Zemplin
region of eastern Slovakia.
I am what you would
call a classical vampire. I am not dead or undead. I just exist. I
am what I am. But, of course, my kin, the Nelapsi, are viscous,
bloodthirsty monsters that stop at nothing in order to
feed.

“
They care not for their donors. In fact, in most cases,
they consume blood with or without permission. It was the winter of
1790, and times were harsh. Humans were dying from starvation, and,
as you can imagine, when you rely solely on the blood of a human,
it becomes a risk to you when they are dying.

“
Unfortunately, that didn’t stop many of my brothers.
Instead of trying to help them, many turned on the young and
defenceless, feeding and consuming their short innocent lives. I
couldn’t live with that guilt, and hated seeing the bloodshed. That
is when I found Leonid, who helped me and many of my brothers to
change what once was an acceptable way of life. We found a new way
of co-existing with humans.”

“
But I
thought Leonid was a descendent of the Nelapsi?” I asked,
confused.

“
Ah, you are right. His Majesty is a descendent through
birth. He, like Alexander, is an inheritor. Meaning, they were born
into their lifestyle like me, but they are not immortal. They can
live for a long time, but death does come eventually.”

“
So, if I wanted to, I could kill them. I mean, hurt them?”
I inquired.

He laughed
menacingly. “I doubt you would survive long enough to cause them
any kind of wound.”

I didn’t
have
the balls to answer him back, so we
sat in silence. Being reminded of how he could kill me sent a
shiver down my spine, and not in a good way.

Minutes
passed before either of us spoke again. I was not sure that what he
had told me was a good or bad thing. In fact, I was pretty sure I
was out of my depth, and I did not like the thought of being
referred to as a ‘commodity.’

“
I think I’ve heard enough. Do you, um, know where Alex
is?”

He smiled
that same creep-you-out smile he’d had before. “I believe he’s
resting, but I dare say you’ll find him in his room. West wing, top
of the stairs, third door on the left.”

“
Thanks.” I smiled as I picked up my can of Coke, and all
but ran from the room.

The hall was
barely lit, and was eerily quiet with only the faint hum of
electricity. My pounding heart was making enough noise in my ears
to add to the feeling of unease, and then a large clock at the top
of the stairs began chiming. I ran up the stairs, two steps at a
time, and tried not to take any notice of the freaky portraits that
hung on the walls. Their eyes just seemed to follow me, as though
they knew what I felt inside. Dark pits of nothingness watched me
as I stood still.

Pausing at
the top, I saw the third door on the left, and held my breath as I
slowly walked over to it, and knocked gently. There was no
answer.

A part of me
wanted to turn away, and just forget about it. But in a way, I was
missing him. Crazy, I know, but it was as though something inside
me took over the logical side, and turned me into this needy
‘
thing.
’ I wanted to see him badly.

Taking a
deep breath, I turned the handle, and entered his room. Soft warm
light welcomed me as I closed the door. I could hear Alex’s gentle
breathing as he slept. As I carefully walked over to the side of
the bed, I could not help but to stare at his naked body. He lay
there, still and gorgeous. I could feel my heart beat hard against
my chest. I had never seen a naked guy in the flesh before, never
mind being alone with one. His chest rose gently with every breath,
and his eyes moved lightly, dreaming.

For one
thing, I was confused. I found it hard to believe that he could be
a monster, and yet look so bloody divine and every bit human. From
everything I’d ever read or watched, vampires just didn’t sleep,
breathe, or dream, for that matter. This was getting crazier by the
second, but the constant pull towards him was so overpowering, I
just couldn’t resist.

I could feel
the flush of my cheeks spreading down the back of my neck, and
oddly, I found myself becoming more and more aroused with
provocative thoughts running through my mind. What went through my
head embarrassed me, and I found it hard to separate lust from
need. I closed my eyes, and willed myself to banish them.
Unfortunately, they refused to leave.

Becoming
more aware of my own heavy breathing, I felt his hand against my
leg. Opening my eyes, I saw him sleepily smiling at me, the green
pools gazing at me, sucking me further into the cesspool of
desire.

“
I did knock. I got worried when you didn’t answer,” I
lied.

“
You didn’t
knock hard enough,” he said, yawning as he pulled me on top of
him.

I held my
breath as I tried to ignore the sweetness of his breath. “If I was
to hazard a guess, I’d say you needed me, or maybe even longed for
me.”

“
Don’t get carried away.” I smiled as I kissed him softly,
finally giving in to temptation.

He brushed his tongue lightly
against mine, teasing me.

God, he tasted delicious.

Every inch
of my body trembled from the kiss.
He
made me want him badly.

The kiss
intensified. So much so, that all common sense went flying out the
window. In its place, was a crazed virgin in need of her first
lover. Alex tugged at my sweater, pulling it over my head. I
loosened my jeans, and together, we slid them off, tossing them to
the floor. I lay under him in my underwear as he looked down at me,
assessing every inch of my body with his eyes flashing
red.

I craved his
touch, and wanted his blood.

Biting hard
into his wrist, the scent instantly burst inside my head. With no
further hesitation, I pulled his arm to me, and drank. The warm
blood gently slipped down my throat, its magnetism pulling me
closer to him. I felt every wave of ecstasy coursing through him.
Sensing his need for me, I pushed his hand away, the blood still
bursting inside me. I drew him down to me with force, and his mouth
explored my neck, kissing my throat, and gently gnawing on me. I
wanted him so much I thought I was going to explode.

He bit down
hard, and it stung like hell, but soon enough, the pain was
removed, and replaced by something else. His thirst was insatiable,
at first; his desire, the driving force behind the bite. He slowed,
gently supping my blood, and abruptly coming to a halt before I
reached a climax.

“
If we don’t stop, we’re going to do something we’ll both
regret. It’s not time.”

I was
breathless. “Oh, my God, you can’t make me feel like that and then
stop!”

“
It’s not that I don’t want to. Believe me, I do. We just
can’t. It would be wrong on so many levels,” he said, shaking his
head.

“
So I shouldn’t take this as rejection?” I asked, feeling
foolish.

“
No way, Giselle. When it does happen, it will be special,
not just, you know, two horned up teens going at it. I
promise.”

I felt
humiliated. I was the one who had, more or less, instigated the
whole thing, and now it felt like the world’s biggest anti-climax
ever.

Rejection sucks.

“
So, what happens now? I prodded as I slipped my jeans on,
shame written across my face.

“
Well, you indulged in your third feed from me, so I guess a
lot of things will happen now. I can almost bet the elders will be
planning your consecration in the next few days, or even hours, and
then we’ll be married.”

That
certainly got my attention. “Married?” I choked on the
word.

Laughing, he
pulled me close to him. “Not like that, but similar. It’s a lot
less formal, and a lot more fun than your usual mortal shindig.
It’ll be good. Wait and see, but first things first. I will go see
Afanas, and fill him in on the necessary things. The rest is our
secret.”

He winked at
me. Grabbing me by the hand, he led me to the door. “I must make
myself presentable, and you might need to brush your hair,” he
mocked, twirling some of my hair between his fingers.

I left his
room, and walked along silently, contemplating what almost happened
back there. For someone who had strong beliefs about abstaining
from sex, I gave losing my virginity a pretty good shot. My mother
had brainwashed me from a young age that good girls do not do that.
They wait until they are in a long-term and loving relationship, or
marriage, the latter being mandatory.

Marriage? I
was not ready for sex, let alone becoming a wife.

Chapter
Seven

THE HOT
WATER
flowed over me as I tried hard to
wash away the past week. I wanted to get rid of any evidence of my
erotic encounter with Alex, and tried in vain to remove the dark
shadow from within the hollow of my chest. I failed at both. I
could still taste his blood, and feel him on my skin. The blackness
repelled the soap, and remained there, its core embedded in my
soul. A cluster of thoughts ran through my head, filling me with
more grief and confusion.

“
What’s happening to me?” I whispered to myself.

It was one
thing being brought into a world where everything was strange and
new to me, but being told that I had to commit myself to Alex was
another thing. I did not want to spend the rest of my life, or what
was left of it, married to a complete stranger. The Alex I knew was
no more, and, to be honest, I doubted I had ever known him. It had
all been a lie, and one with a specific motive.

Yet
something happened every time I was around him. It was almost as
though I was being taken over by some unknown force. Every bit of
common sense told me it was wrong and unnatural, yet I desired him
and his blood. It was as if I had become spellbound. None-the-less,
all the thinking in the world was not about to change the fact that
I was to become betrothed to him, and, worse, I was to carry his
child.

There had to
be a way of escaping it all, but I did not know who to turn to, who
I could trust. The worst part of it all was that I felt as though I
had wished this all on myself, as though it was my own doing. If I
was able to turn the clock back, I would not have called Alex. I
would not have given Marc a reason to sleep with Evie, but, like
always, everything is great in hindsight.

Somehow,
everything I once knew was now gone. Giving in, I sat in the tub,
and cried. I mourned my lost youth, my freedom, and, more
importantly, I agonized over losing the right to choose my own path
in life. Time passed as the water rested cold and still around my
legs. My eyes were swollen from crying.

A faint
knock at the door removed me from my inner torment, and brought me
to the present. I looked a mess, completely dishevelled. I refused
to respond, remaining silent in the bath. I did not have the energy
or confidence to talk to anyone. I wanted to be alone, and allowed
to wallow in my self-pity.

Persistence
came with the next knock. A succession of loud bangs made me
scramble to my feet, almost slipping in the now stagnant water.
Pulling a robe over me, I answered the door, the noise pulsating
through my head.

Standing
before me was the same old woman I had bumped into in the corridor
earlier. Her beady eye looked me up and down, whilst her lazy eye
remained motionless. She mumbled something to me. As I was unable
to understand, she raised her voice. Its pitch became a deafening
sound.

Shaking my
head, I shouted, “I’m sorry. I don’t know what you’re
saying.”

She
continued to scold me in her strange language, and pushed hard past
me, shoving me up against the door. Her small frame was not as
fragile as it looked.

I watched
her move around the room, erratically looking for something. She
talked constantly, repeating the same thing over and over. Her
voice began to get on my nerves, and I could feel my temper start
to rise.

“
Oh, shut up!” I bellowed. “Just shut the hell
up!”

Standing
still, she eyed me, and stared, long and hard. Her eyes were icy
cold and red, and they scared the crap out of me.

“
Saty!” she pointed at me. “Saty! Diet’a ste
neskoro.”