“What did I just tell you?” Sterling's voice came out like the crack of a whip, lashing over my skin. I jerked to attention, finding him looming over me. I withered under his steel-cold stare.
“To focus.”
“Am I going to have to fuck you stupid every time I'm in need of your attention?”
I gulped so loud I knew they both could hear it. “Yes, please.”
Sterling straightened, putting some much-needed space between us in order for me to draw breath inside me. Not that I needed it. I’d much rather have him inside me. We all needed to blow off steam. But he was right. There were other matters to focus on.
He jabbed a slender finger into the chair beside Corry's. “Sit.”
This time, I scrambled to obey. He gave a sage nod of approval and began to slowly pace around the table. “Good. Now, to discuss the matters of your blood magic, Corry.”
“What is it, exactly?” The youngblood asked, the corners of his lips pulling taut like he was afraid of the answer.
“It's a rare form of demon magic. You already know that. What my research has uncovered is the matter of how you acquired such magic, seeing as you're not a demon. Demon magic isn't like vampire magic. Vampire magic is acquired like most skills, through practice and usually over many years. It can also be passed genetically, although that is an extremely rare occurrence seeing as although vampires can genetically reproduce with the aid of a mortal, most cannot survive. But demon magic is different. Their arcana is far more dangerous and functions like a disease. This particular kind of magic is passed—er—sexually.”
The awkward silence that dropped over the library was so thick, you could cut it with any one of Eros' medieval torture weapons he kept on display in the basement. Understanding slowly warped Corry's expression into something deeply unsettling. “Oh god.”
“He got it from V, didn't he?” I asked Sterling.
The elder vampire nodded.
Corry propped his elbows on the table and buried his head in his palms, groaning. “I got an STD from a fucking demon.”
“Hey, at least it's a useful STD,” I said, trying to be helpful.
Corry glared at me through his fingers. “Oh, so it's a magical sex disease.Yippee.”
“Spare us the dramatics, Corry,” Sterling sighed. “It's not gonorrhea, for Christ's sake. Nor is it an STD in the traditional sense. Literally, its only side effect is the ability to manipulate the flow of another's life force. And you cannot pass it on to Ruby either.”
“Can it be cured?”
Sterling bristled at the younger vampire's inquiry. “No. And why in the world would you want to? This is a great boon to us.”
“I don't want to be a monster,” Corry muttered, his shoulders falling as his gaze iced over.
“That ship has sailed, I'm afraid, my young prince,” Sterling said in a softer voice.
“You're being hard on yourself because you almost killed Vincent,” I said, saying the thought out loud as it occurred to me. “You think you might hurt someone else close to you again.”
Corry cast his attention out the window, looking wistfully out at the sun, which was now dipping low on the horizon. “I have no idea how to control it. In the graveyard, I saw Vincent's monster with you, Ruby, and I thought the worst.” His Adam's apple bobbed with a swallow. “I got so mad.”
Sterling nodded. “Demon magic is often controlled by emotions, usually ones we associate with negativity. This one, in particular, is awakened with rage.”
“That explains why he hadn't discovered it until now,” I said. “Corry's never pissed off. At least not to that level.”
Corry directed his gaze back to me, and his brows flicked up in surprise. “You're not mad?”
I blinked. “Why would I be mad?”
“Because he contracted this ability via intercourse with another woman,” Sterling interjected.
I reached for Corry's hand, which was balled into a fist on the table between us. His fingers uncoiled and relaxed as I smoothed my gentle touch over his. “Oh, Cor. I told you I'm over that. You were close to V because you needed to find a more powerful means of sating your bloodlust than the blood bags and pills offered. It was one night. It could have been a lot worse. Itcouldhave been the kind of STD that doesn't give you cool, metal as fuck blood bending powers.”
“Plus, there is the matter of how it can help us defeat the vampire king once and for all.”
Now Corry was at full attention. “How?”
