Chapter Fifty-Seven
This wasn’t what Anatoly wanted at all. He was furious and hurt, but at least Maggie seemed to be in good spirits. If he could have gone back downstairs and killed Reed again, he would have, happily. As it was, he continued to hold Maggie in his arms, caressing her hair, whispering that he loved her no matter what. Seeing her again had done his heart good at least.
“Anatoly…” she whispered his name, fixing him with a firm stare. “Why is your hand all bloody? It’s… making me very hungry.”
Under normal circumstances, he might have chuckled but given the weight of their new situation a pained expression took over his features. He quickly explained what he had done to Reed and then added, “I have no regrets.”
Maggie snorted. “I’m glad he’s gone. He was a terrible person.”
She raised his hand to her mouth and licked at the blood there. She shuddered. “He tastes awful. Can… can we find something for me to eat?”
Anatoly was staring at her, surprised she’d even tried. Then he remembered how ravenous he had been after his turning and knew he needed to find her someone to snack on before she lost control of herself. “Of course, I will have to teach you how to hunt.”
“Hunt? Like… with a rifle out in the woods kind of hunt?” She sounded alarmed and he couldn’t blame her.
“Nyet, is less in woods and more in populated area. With people,” he added, watching closely for her reaction.
She just nodded, her mouth forming a silent O.
Anatoly decided regardless of their next move, he needed to get her out of his house before the sun came up. He stood to his feet, pulling her along. Then he took her hand and lead her toward the door. There was a whole mess they needed to clean up; her reappearance would need to be explained to the police if they were to remain in Anchorage and there was also the matter of Anatoly’s debt to Markov.
The thought made him shudder, but he wasn’t ready to share that news with Maggie just yet. He didn’t want to worry her any further tonight. It was better they got her a bite to eat and retreated to her apartment.
Once they were outside, Anatoly insisted on driving and put Maggie in the front passenger’s seat before walking around to the driver’s side. “I will take you to place where you can find someone to feed on, but we must be careful, Maggie, da?”
“Of course. I don’t want to hurt anyone. Just take what I need and be done with it,” she answered, and he couldn’t help letting out a sigh of relief.
He knew that vampires were as varied as mortals were, but he couldn’t help feeling that Reed’s blood had somehow tainted her. It was ridiculous when he really thought about it, an irrational fear that he would not have shared with Maggie when she was so freshly turned. He didn’t want to sully her first night with his own insecurities.
As he put the car in gear and drove away from that terrible house, he hoped this whole thing wouldn’t come back to bite them in the ass.
“You’re worried, aren’t you?” Maggie’s voice cut into his thoughts.
He wanted to tell her he wasn’t, but that would have been a lie. “Da,” he replied instead, keeping his eyes on the road ahead. “When I was turned, I had sire to guide me. But your sire is dead.”
“My sire was an asshole,” she pointed out with a nervous laugh. “Do you really think he could have done a better job of teaching me than you?”
Anatoly shifted in his seat, his insecurities coming back to haunt him. He had just killed someone. Sure, Reed had been a monster, but once, he’d been a man with hopes and dreams. Any chance at redemption had been snatched away and while Anatoly didn’t regret his actions, he knew someday he would have to answer for them.
“You will teach me, won’t you?” She sounded suddenly afraid and Anatoly reached over instantly to envelope her hand in his.
“Da, I could never forsake you, Maggie,” he said and meant every word.
They rode the rest of the way in silence, both lost to their own thoughts. More than once Anatoly would open his mouth to speak and then think better of it. He wanted to reassure her, but the events of the night were beginning to weigh on his heart. He had confessed his sins to Maggie, but he wouldn’t feel better until he paid some sort of penance. Or perhaps, nearly losing Maggie in the first place was his penance?
Snow continued to fall and as a result, traffic was light. It didn’t take them very long to reach their destination, which was a little bar downtown. Thankfully the place was still open at this hour and it seemed packed. He parked the car and turned off the engine. Silence continued to prevail and as they sat there together, snow built up on the windshield.
Finally, Maggie broke the quiet. “Are we going in?”
He nodded, trying to get his thoughts in order. “You must feed,” he insisted. “This is best place to find subject, but must be careful, too. We do not want to draw attention.”
“Okay, then what do I do?”
Deciding to take it from a clinical angle, Anatoly began to explain, filling her in on the finer points of hunting as a vampire. She listened intently, a frown slowly forming on her forehead, but she didn’t interrupt, and for that he was grateful. He never thought he’d be teaching anyone how to make their bite pleasurable or how to seal a superficial bite mark, let alone Maggie.
“When we get inside, I will sit in corner and let you draw subject to you. Be swift, be discreet. Do what you must,” he finished.
Maggie just nodded, but he could feel her fingers trembling in his hand. She was nervous and she should be. If she got caught, it would raise a lot of awkward questions and could call down hell upon their heads. He tried not to think about that as he opened his door and stepped out into the snow.
