I downed the liquid withgreedy gulps until the final drop dribbled out. “More.” I looked at him, licking my lips.
“You may have another bottle later.”
“I want more,” I demanded, my body screaming for another fix.
“Listen to me,” he swiped the empty bottle from my hands and set it aside, “this is part of learning to become a good vampire, one who does not succumb to bloodlust or kill indiscriminately. One who is worthy of being my wife.”
My eyes went wide. “Wife?”
He nodded. “If you survive this first month, yes, I would like you to marry me.”
If that had been a proposal, it sucked squirrel nuts, but I was more worried about that first part. “Whadduya mean survive?”
He took my hand between his large palms. “Being a vampire is not for everyone. It takes discipline and restraint. Especially now when we live in such tumultuous times where there is little room for error.”
He was referring to the fact that vampires had only recently come out of hiding, and the world was still digesting that big old pile of holy cow. Of course, some humans wanted to immediately exterminate vampires, while others wanted their blood for its healing properties, and more than a few wackos wanted to become them. In any case, vampires were skating on thin ice, so they’d made killing humans illegal under vampire law as a peace offering.
“You’re afraid I might attack someone and be punished?” I asked worriedly.
He nodded. “And until you can control your thirst, humans are not safe in your company.”
“But what about seein’ Mamma? And Maybell? What about the Flaming Rooster?” My uncle Jimmie had retired recently and left the business to me. Sure, I had staff to help run things. Even Daddy worked there, and he was a vampire, too.Another long story.Point was, they needed me to keep the wheels on the family bus.
Stark pressed a finger under my chin, forcing me to acknowledge the seriousness in his gaze. “Until you’ve settled into your new body, you must keep a low profile. That includes socializing with any humans you are personally associated with. If you make a mistake, it will be more difficult to conceal if the victim is someone known to you. Or worse, someone you love.”
I gasped.Dear Lord. He thinks I’m gonna kill Mamma or Maybell.
Stark continued like a schoolmaster in lecture mode, “In addition, while you are in this vulnerable state, I think it best not to tell anyone you are a vampire. It might make you a target for any humans wishing to exploit your blood, and I would be forced to kill them.”
But my family already knew. Mamma, Daddy, and my older sister, Maybell, had been at my bedside after Lazlo and Fionanearly drank me to death and fed me vampire blood. Stark’s only option had been to wait and see if I’d turn, die, or pull through.
I frowned. “Can’t I at least check in with my folks?”
“By phone, yes. But you cannot see them.”
“Not even Daddy?” He would be in no danger from me. Stark had turned Daddy years ago after Daddy had a heart attack while working at the distillery. Stark had just happened to be there and happened to be friends with my uncle Jimmie, who knew what Stark was. As a favor, Stark turned Daddy.
“I hate to point out the obvious, Masie, but your mother is not right in the head,” Stark said.
Rude. Also true. “What’s your point?”
“She and your sister will not react well if you refuse to see them but allow your father visitation. They will think you have turned your back on them for being human.” He lowered his voice. “You must trust me on this. I am over five hundred years old, and I have witnessed countless families turn on each other for far less. Do not sow the seeds of distrust.”
Maybe he had a point. I looked down at my hands, feeling them tingle with heat. Was it the effect of the blood in the elixir? “Am I really a vampire, Stark?”
“Yes, you are a vampire,” he said with a voice so potent that it vibrated through my head, as if sinking into my brain cells. “And you will be themost beautiful vampire ever to live. A creature to be feared.”
Huh?“I don’t want to be feared.” I wanted to manage the Rooster, work to make my family’s business as successful as possible, and keep Leiper’s Fork from turning into just another place to gas up on the way to somewhere else.
This last year, I’d been working hard to help the town grow its tourism, even turning the country club where Stark lived into a meet-a-vampire spa and healing retreat. Okay, and golf, too. Now people were traveling from all over to talk to ancient vampires one-on-one so they could overcome their fears. Some came to drink vampire blood to cure an illness.
Sure, there were other places to get vampire blood, but with so many illegal vampire-juicing farms and counterfeit blood bars, people wanted something safe and ethical.
The best part was that our human guests could choose to pay by making a donation of their own blood to feed a vampire. It was a win for everyone, including the small businesses in town. It was the least I could do after turning down a big role as the national leader of the VCP, Vampire Coexistence Party. My heart just wasn’t into politics, but it had all worked out. My good friend Charlie Cross took the role, and I got to keep my quiet, small-town life.
Which is why being feared is not on my bucket list.
“I understand that you arestill learning our ways,” Stark said, “but believe me when I say that fear is the most valuable asset a vampire can possess. It is the only thing that will keep youandthose you love away from harm, which I know you value. It is the very reason you must obey me and stay away from humans until you’ve mastered the art of self-control.”
