The Vampire Gift 2: Kingdom of(13)

She turns her gaze downward. “Because I saw you in the village,” she tells me. “Before you even knew I existed, I saw how you interacted with the villagers. You’re not like the other vampires, Phillip. You’re different.”

I scoff a harsh laugh. “You think I don’t know that? And the only reason I’m ‘different’ is because I’ve rejected the feeding process that opens the gates of darkness. I’ve held the creature inside me dormant for so long that it’s not a part of who I am any more. But the second I taste your blood, it’ll be unleashed. I’ll be worse than a newborn vampire. The bloodlust will be unparalleled. I won’t be able to stop myself with you. I’ll go after others. And because I know these caves, because I know The Haven, no humans will be safe from me.”

I ease myself away from the wall. “Is that what you want, April? Because that’s the choice you’re giving me. It’s not, ‘Drink and save Patricia’s life.’ It’s ‘Drink and kill you, and kill dozens of others.’ When the sickness takes over and I black out, there’s no going back. That is my dilemma. That is the choice you’re asking me to make.”

“I don’t believe you,” she whispers. “You’re stronger than that.”

I approach her. She does not move away.

I advance until our bodies are almost touching. Her scent fills my nostrils—that tantalizing mix of mortal innocence and human blood and…

I nearly gasp. And woman.

I can see the emotions raging beyond her eyes. Some humans are easy to read. Not her. She keeps everything about her behind those stunning blue irises.

“Why aren’t you frightened?” I whisper.

“Because… because I know your heart,” she says. She hesitates, then reaches out and takes my hand. She brings it up, between our two bodies. “You’re not like the guards or the others. There is good in you.”

“It’s tainted,” I say. “Tainted by evil.”

“You’ve fought it off for this long,” she says. “Why would your willpower falter now?” She looks into my eyes. “I know you can do it. You can restrain yourself. Have a drink. Save Patricia’s life.”

Still I hesitate.

“If you think it’ll change you… it won’t.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because all the Soren brothers possess their Father’s strength,” she says.

I look at her as if seeing her for the first time. “What do you know about my Father?”

“I know that he rules the most powerful coven in the world. I know that his strength on this earth is unrivalled.”

“But you’re human.” The gears spin in my head. “You’re human, and you were brought to The Haven from the Outside. No humans know about the other covens!”

“My memory was restored,” is all the explanation she offers.

A noise behind us makes me snap around.

“Quick!” she breathes. “This is your last chance! Do it, do it now, or else Patricia dies!”

The conflict inside me rages as strong as a tempest. Do I dare do it? Do I dare fail myself and give in to Mother’s demands?

Still the scent of this human girl calls to me. The temptation is unlike any I’ve felt or known before. It’s not just the blood that makes it appealing.

It’s the fact that it’s hers.

She pulls her straight blonde hair back and cranes her neck. Her eyes drift closed as she arches herself into me.

“Drink,” she whispers. “But—” she opens one eye. “—But remember who you’re doing it to.”

With that, the sealed door opens, and my choice is made for me.

I sink my fangs into April’s neck and draw deep.





Chapter Six




SMITHSON



I shove my captive out in front of me. The silver sack covering her head does nothing against the natural influence of power she exerts over others.

That influence is the reason I’m taking her beneath ground alone. None of the guards I have command over in The Haven have even a tenth of the discipline my former colleagues in The Vorcellian Order possessed. Since I’m newly arrived here, I have only the most basic surface layer of understanding about the currents of power flowing through this coven.

That is why, for now, the only person I fully trust is myself.

Victoria walks onward without protest. It’s almost like she already knows the place. Nothing in the terrain gives her even a second’s hesitation despite having her eyes covered. She’s as sure-footed as a goat.

So far, she hasn’t tried lashing out with the power she possesses. I know it’s only a matter of time. A vampire as strong as her does not stay captive for long.