Blood Secrets: Part 3

If you missed it, Part 2 "Blood Secrets: Part 2" 

My stomach knotted as my anxiety threatened to consume me. The fighting lesson with Jonathan had come on my third day at the house. He seemed to want to give me a little rest before letting me have it. The group's leader did not seem to be the type of person who showed mercy. He scared me out of my mind. Thick, dark clouds covered the sky line, so I met him that morning in the vast yard behind the house. To my dismay, he did not come alone. The tall, muscular man Layla introduced as Vic stood next to Jonathan with crossed arms. They both looked quite serious and intimidating as they stood before me. Their icy eyes and gleaming teeth proclaimed that they were all business in full vamp mode. I swallowed hard, apprehensive about what they would subject me to.

At first, they only showed me various punches, kicks, and blocks. From what little time I spent with the fighter, I remembered most of them. Of course, we had hidden under a bridge together to get out of a severe rainstorm and to avoid a group of angry villagers who pursued him. To pass the time, he told me about his former life, but didn't take the time to show me the proper posture for the moves. Since he liked talking about himself, the subject never got to me, which I didn't mind.

As I stood in the fighting stance and punched at the air, Jonathan unabashedly grabbed at my arms and legs to adjust them to the proper spots. It surprised me that he never raised his voice or called me names if I did something incorrect. He and Vic had to remind me to use my heightened senses to my advantage. However, Jonathan kept scolding me for not using all of the strength that I had. After being around humans for a portion of my life, I had become afraid of getting aggressive. Not only that, I hadn't spent much time around other vampires either. My lack of experience left me with a disadvantage. I underestimated their power as well as mine. A couple hours into the lesson, Jonathan and Vic stepped behind me. When I tried to turn around, Jonathan put a hand to my shoulder to keep me facing forward.

“You’ve got great potential, Evelyn,” he began; his voice had a powerful, demanding edge on it. Suddenly, Jonathan and Vic roughly took hold of my arms, pinning them behind me. Jonathan’s face was right next to mine. “Do you remember this?”

I nodded nervously, remembering how those other vampires had held me still this way.

“Try to get free; it can be done.”

My shoulders and arms twisted and pulled as I tried to jerk free from their grasp. They were so much stronger than the other vampires had been. Then I tried kicking backward at them. They only stepped around my sad attempts.

Jonathan growled fiercely, catching me off guard. “You’re struggling like a weak human! No matter how you came to be, you’re still a vampire. Act like one! Think about your surroundings and who you’re up against.”

“I can’t,” I cried weakly. “You’re too strong.”

Jonathan shook his head. “Just like a rookie, eh Vic? Okay, I’ll take it easy on you this time and walk you through it. You have to use those long legs of yours to your advantage. Haven’t you ever tried jumping over somebody? Pull all your weight down, causing us to struggle to keep you standing. Then quickly launch yourself up and behind us. If the torque is enough, we’ll have no choice but to release you. Try it.”

I swallowed hard, unsure of myself. As I meekly looked between Jonathan and Vic, they didn’t lighten up on their grips on my arms. Jonathan snarled at me again; despite his gorgeous face, he could be extremely frightening when he wanted to be. To calm myself down, I closed my eyes and slowed my breathing. My light blue eyes flew open and I hissed. Then, quick as a flash, I crouched down bringing the two with me. Just as quickly, I launched myself upward, arched my back, and twisted my arms free of their holds. My feet sailed over my head and I landed softly on the grass behind my teachers. Surprised with myself, I smiled widely. As I smoothed down my hair, they quickly stood up and turned to me. Jonathan was smiling.

“Now that’s what I’m talking about. See what you can do when you try? You’re quicker than you think. I’m surprised you got it on the first run.” He jabbed Vic lightly in the shoulder. “I think that’s enough for today. How ‘bout a drink, Vic? I definitely could use some O positive right now.” Vic agreed and they lumbered back to the house with confident strides.

Slowly following, I took notice of their differences. Vic was a couple of inches taller than Jonathan was and far more muscular. Jonathan’s upper body was remarkably well toned, and he was lean. He must look really good without that shirt, I thought, gnawing on my lower lip and raising my eyebrows. His hair was also slightly on the long side and even though he had it combed back, it flickered in the breeze as he walked. As I tilted my head and envisioned Jonathan’s bare muscular back, he suddenly turned around and winked at me. Vic continued into the house but Jonathan waved at me to follow.

“Come on, Rookie, the clouds are beginning to break up,” he called after me, smiling crookedly. “I’ll show you some more jump moves another day. Maybe I'll even let you throw some punches at me. You can see me shirtless then.”

My eyes grew wide with embarrassment and I swallowed hard, as my mouth had grown instantly dry. How in the hell had he known what I was thinking? My mouth hung open as I made my way, dumbfounded, towards the house.

Since I wasn’t thirsty right at that moment, and wanted to avoid Jonathan at all costs, I made my way upstairs. After washing up, I laid on my back in bed and tried to figure Jonathan out. “I wonder what his deal is?” I asked myself as I stared at the pale, smooth ceiling. Had he been listening to my thoughts the whole time? Could he read all thoughts, or did he sense feelings? I hoped, for my sake, that he hadn’t read all my thoughts, especially those that included him.

Suddenly, there came a gentle knock at the door. "Come in," I called out. As I rolled off the bed, Layla slowly opened the door.

“How’s it going?” She sounded almost timid.

With a noncommittal shrug, I replied, “Okay I guess.”

Layla sat next to me on the bed, stared at her hands, and examined her fingernails. Her hesitation gave me the feeling that she wanted to tell me something.

“What is it?” I finally asked her.

“Can I tell you something?”

I nodded.

Patting my knee, she continued, “I just wanted to tell you to not worry about Jonathan.”

Confused, I raised an eyebrow and tilted my head towards her.

“He’s been known to be a ladies man. Well, I heard the shirt comment he gave you and didn’t want you to be embarrassed. Jonathan likes to show off sometimes, so don’t worry about it. I like you, Evie; you’re spunky like me. I want to make sure you feel at home here.”

“Thanks, Layla. I was pretty embarrassed. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a place I could call home, so this is a nice change of pace.” As I smiled and gave Layla a hug, she sighed in relief. It seemed that she wasn't the cold woman that she appeared to be when we first met. It was comforting to have Layla for a friend. Besides, she was the closest thing to a mother that I’d had in a very long time. Eventually, after Layla had gone, I decided I needed to wash my face. After the embarrassing turn of events with Jonathan, I needed a splash of cold water to clear my head of my fears and my face of the sweat. The wooden floors creaked as I stepped out into the hall. Down the corridor, I heard a door squeak open and Will stepped out of one of the rooms. Layla had said he knew a lot about vampires. I wondered if perhaps he had heard of others like me.

"Will?" I called to him.

He smiled, lighting up his hazel eyes. "What can I do for you?"

"I was wondering if I could talk to you about vampires." As I walked towards him, I grew less nervous. He seemed to have a generous and understanding nature about him. Will's casual dress of baggy jeans and t-shirt made me feel comfortable about asking him. Not to mention the fact that his warmer skin tone helped him to stand out from the rest. For some reason, that slight differentiation from the others of the house caused me to feel a little closer to him.

"Of course," he replied sweetly, then waved me into the room he had just left.

The room looked more like an office than a bedroom. A black film covered the windows, hindering any light that tried to come in. Tall, completely packed bookshelves lined the back wall. Cushioned leather chairs and a glass coffee table sat in front of the shelves. An elegant ironwood desk sat against the opposite wall. Will crossed the room to one of the brown leather chairs and motioned for me to sit at the other.

Will crossed his left leg over his right and rested his arms against the overstuffed sides of the chair. "What would you like to know?" He watched me curiously.

Trying to think of where to begin, I took a deep breath. "Have you ever heard of half-human, half-vampires? Is my existence even possible?"

He smiled. "Well, obviously it's possible; I can see you. You're sitting right there. Have I ever heard of anything like you? I can't say that I have. In the back alleys, you hear about scientists experimenting with vampire DNA, but I have yet to hear about anyone succeeding in creating a hybrid. There are also legends of the Daywalkers, but you can't exactly walk around in broad daylight without being affected. You are definitely a mystery."

For a minute, he only stared at me. I bit my lip, unsure of what to ask him next. Luckily, I didn't have to say anything. Will's tender eyes scrunched slightly, as if he was deeply immersed in thought.

"What do you know about your parents?" he finally asked.

"Not much besides what I told everyone before. My mother didn't tell me who my father was. I only know he's a vampire. In fact, I hardly know anything about my mother. She told me that at twenty-six years old, my father turned her. She liked to keep secrets. My mother lived for being mysterious. It seems my birth is the grandest secret of all." Leaning back in the chair, I sighed as I thought of my mother again. Why did she have to die before telling me the truth?

He nodded slowly. Scratching his stubbly chin, Will quickly stood up and walked around the coffee table to the bookcase. He scanned the shelf at eye level and then pulled out the top of one of the books. As soon as the book protruded from a forty-five degree angle, I heard a loud hisss and the grinding sound of gears turning. Will stepped away and a section of the bookshelf receded into the wall and slid out of sight, revealing a staircase leading down. As I slowly stood up, my jaw slackened with disbelief.

A serious look crossed his face and he gestured towards the secret entryway. “Come.”

I followed Will down the cold, narrow staircase lit only by gas lamps. Our footsteps echoed on the stone beneath our feet. As we traveled down, the dank stairwell curved into a tight spiral. The farther down we went, the air grew cold and stuffy. Before too long, we reached the bottom at a heavy wooden door. With ease, Will pushed it open.

With the opening of the door, fluorescent lights above us flickered on. I found myself in a modest laboratory. The stale, stagnant air made me wrinkle my nose in dislike. The room couldn’t have been more than fifteen foot square. A stainless steel table sat in the middle, surrounded by more tables topped with instruments and flasks. I spied several test tubes and glasses containing various liquids and powders of all colors.

“What is this place?” I asked, more to myself.

“This,” Will answered, “is the lab. I was a scientist in my former days. If I test your blood, then I might have a better idea of what you are.”

By the look in his eyes, he seemed to remember those days with fondness. The idea of finding out what I was excited me. We couldn't get started soon enough. After I hopped up on the table in the center of the room, Will pulled a syringe from a drawer of the table to my left. With expertise, he drew enough blood from my arm to fill the small vile he laid on the table next to me. After filling the vile, he shook it and examined the dark blood inside. I wanted to ask him if he could tell anything just by looking, but the intense look of concentration on his face shut me up.

Will then walked to the table in front of me and put a drop of my blood on a slide to examine it with the large microscope situated next to the line of test tubes. With his back to me, he began scrutinizing the blood sample. Listening intently, I heard him make indiscernible noises of curiosity.

At first I sat there quietly, but quickly grew anxious about whether or not he would find anything. Finally losing my patience, I dropped from my seat on the table. “What do you see?”

“Well, before I tell you, let me explain a little bit about blood. Normal, human blood consists of plasma, red blood cells, and white blood cells. Right?”

I nodded, but didn’t say anything because Will quickly continued.

“Vampire blood, however, contains a mutated fourth cell. This vampyrus cell is very aggressive and causes a much faster rate of decay to the other cells. Because our cells decay and regenerate faster, we heal at an accelerated rate. It, for a lack of a better word, eats the plasma, creating a vampire’s thirst for blood.” Will’s brow furrowed and he sighed, still looking intensely into the eye piece of the microscope.

“What does my blood look like?”

“Well,” he said again, genuinely confused about what he saw. “Your blood…”

Sensing his hesitation, I goaded him to continue, “My blood…what? What do you see?”

“Well, you know how blood cells have these antigens on them and that tells us what type it is?”

“Yeah,” I slowly replied. Where was he going with this?

“When someone is turned, the vampyrus cell infiltrates and mutates the human cells, as well as the antigens.”

I gnawed on my lip, sensing what he was about to say. “My blood doesn’t look like it should, does it?”

Will slowly shook his head and finally looked toward me. He stepped away and motioned for me to look for myself and tried to explain as I observed my odd looking blood. There was no fourth cell that all vampires were supposed to have. Instead, my blood cells were a little spiky and there were no antigens.

“Your blood in unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. It’s like the vampyrus cell merged with the other cells, creating an all new one. If you were turned, there should be tiny vampyrus cells all over.” He hesitated again, unsure of what it all meant.

Looking up from the lens with a confused and slightly frightened brow, I asked, “So what am I?”

Will continued to shake his head, his countenance just as confused and frightened as I was, if not more so. “Did you say your mother was turned while she was pregnant?”

“That’s what she told me.” Despite the chilly room, I found my hands growing sweaty so I wiped them on my pants. I had always known that my mother hadn't told me the complete truth about my birth, but never knew exactly how much she kept from me.

“That doesn’t sound right. Blood like this doesn’t just happen through random genetics." Leaning back on the table, he chomped down on his lower lip. After another moment's hesitation, he explained, "It’s created.”

“Created?” I, too, leaned against the table and gripped the edge tight in an attempt to keep myself from collapsing. My jaw dropped in utter disbelief and my entire body began to shake. Created? Like test tube babies? Why had my mother lied to me?

“Your blood is a human-vampire hybrid. I didn’t think that was even genetically possible. Who would have that kind of technology?” Will scratched the back of his neck and began pacing around the room. Then he made his way towards the door. “I can't think about this right now. Come on, you should get some rest. We’ll talk more another day.”

Silently, I followed Will back up the stone staircase to the library. Mumbling to himself and rubbing his temples, Will left the room. By the time I managed to get myself to the hallway, he was gone. My feet felt like bricks as I stumbled down to the bathroom. On any other day, I would have appreciated the beauty of the simple, yet elegant mosaic tile floor that looked like a rug, but I only turned on the chrome faucet of the porcelain sink and splashed ice cold water in my face. After I dried my face with a soft white towel, I looked at myself in the crystal clean mirror. Not much had changed since I was sixteen, except that my face looked a little longer than it had been and my eyes seemed to contain more wisdom.

Once I was back in my room, I started to pace. Created? The word hung on my mind and echoed through my thoughts. My mother had kept so much more from me than I had thought. Tired of pacing, I plopped back onto the bed. For a while, I continued to lie there, staring at the ceiling. Even after I tossed, turned, and tried sleeping with my head at the foot of the bed, I couldn't calm myself down enough to rest. It was turning out to be one of those sleepless nights. It was no wonder that I couldn't sleep, I had just discovered that I wasn't the product of a loving relationship between a human and a vampire. Someone had to work in a lab somewhere and experiment with vampire and human DNA. Had they experimented on my mother? Did she willingly volunteer or did they force her? Shaking my head, I didn't want to think about what she had gone through and what the point was for creating me.

Eventually, I turned on my stomach to watch the window shaped box of light move slowly across the floor and disappear as night approached. Restless, I finally jumped out of bed. Not only was I angry with my mother for lying to me, but it had been such a long time since I had had my own room and I wasn’t used to staying one place for too long.

Feeling incredibly frustrated and shocked, I decided I needed to get outside. Something compelled me to see what the view from roof looked like. Since I didn’t want to disturb anyone downstairs and still wished to avoid Jonathan, I crossed to the wide bay window. The center window opened smoothly, but sadly was not next to a tree. I stuck my head outside the window and looked up the turret to see how far it was to the top. Reaching the roof would have taken good fifteen to twenty foot jump. Unsure if I could make it, I gnawed on my lower lip. A slight breeze blew in, beckoning me outside with its sweet smell.

My feet felt secure on the windowsill as I braced myself for the most spectacular jump I had ever made. Taking a deep breath, I tried to get rid of all the negative thoughts from my mind that told me I couldn’t make it. My knees bent, readying themselves. To make sure I hadn't underestimated the height, I glanced up one last time. Before I could talk myself out of it, I jumped with all my might. My fingers clawed at the side of the brick turret in hopes that maybe that would help. The roof came quickly, a little too quickly. Apparently, I had used a little too much force and couldn’t get my balance. I landed hard, face down, on the rough shingles.

“Ugh,” I groaned, slowly getting up. “That was graceful.” I brushed myself off and wobbled slightly on the incline of the roof of the tower. By the time I had righted myself, I noticed a figure sitting on the roof about fifty feet from where I stood. I didn’t have to smell him on the breeze to know it was Jonathan. The very person I had wanted to avoid sat right in front of me, and it looked like he was smiling. He had obviously witnessed my lady-like leap and thud to the roof. The short walk over was more difficult than I had anticipated since I had to compensate for the pitch of the roof, and not to mention, approaching Jonathan was like a walk of shame. It was the second time that day I had embarrassed myself in front of him.

“I hope I’m not disturbing you,” I began, unsure of what to say. Gnawing on my lip again, I hoped that he wouldn't bring up what had happened that morning.

Jonathan shook his head and looked my way with a calm expression on his face. “Please, sit down.”

The moon was full and it covered the landscape in a blue haze. I wouldn’t have thought it possible that Jonathan could look more handsome, but the moonlight intensified his good looks and his cobalt eyes seemed to glow. Since I was still a little uncomfortable around him, I sat a couple of feet away. For a couple of minutes, I only glanced over the back yard. The view from the roof allowed me a proper perspective of how large the estate really was. The yard seemed more like a meadow encompassed by a thick grove of trees. Before I could say anything, Jonathan spoke.

“So, what brings you up here?” He continued to face forward.

“I was getting a little restless and wanted to get outside. I don’t know; something just beckoned me up here.” My shoulders hunched in a light shrug as I faced forward to avoid looking towards him. Since I had just learned something new about myself, I wanted to ponder it some more before I divulged the information to him. “Do you come up here a lot?”

“Yes. I come up here to clear my head and think. Being a vampire, I don’t sleep at night, so I tend to come up here and watch the tree line.”

“Would you like me to go?” Part of me wanted him to say yes; I couldn’t understand what made me so uncomfortable. Yet, at that moment, there was something different about him. He seemed more at ease and laid back than I had seen him before.

Jonathan finally turned his head to look at me properly and smiled sweetly. “No, you’re fine. It’s kind of nice to have some company for a change.”

Mesmerized, I only stared at him for a little while; I had so many questions. Still, I didn’t want to bother him, so I faced forward again.

He smirked. “Go ahead.”

“What?”

“Go ahead and ask me.”

Brushing a stray lock of hair out of my face, I turned to him. “How do you do that?”

Jonathan raised an eyebrow, looking confused. “Do what?”

My eyes narrowed and glared at him; he was enjoying my frustration a little too much. “Don’t act as if you don’t know what I’m talking about. You keep doing that, like reading my mind or something. It’s driving me crazy.”

He shrugged. “When you’re as old as I am, you learn a few things. I was extremely perceptive when I was a human, and when I was turned, my senses heightened. Humans tend to think loudly and it isn’t difficult to sense their thoughts. Most vampires can tune out their minds, but I can usually tell what they’re feeling.”

“And what about me?” It was very difficult to drown my thoughts before he responded. My mind wanted to race, and I was having trouble holding it in.

Jonathan hesitated before he spoke. His contemplative expression made me wonder what he thought about and whether or not his hesitation meant he was reading my thoughts. “Well, you’re a very special case. You tend to think loudly, but it goes it spurts. Most of the time I can tell what you’re feeling, but I really haven't had to since your eyes tend to give them away.”

Feeling suddenly embarrassed, I bit my lip. A little butterfly fluttered in my stomach. Jonathan held my gaze for only an instant before returning his stare to the yard. He indeed was incredibly intuitive. It wasn’t a wonder he had lived so long. Before I could think too much about his last statement, I changed the subject. “So, how did you meet VanDorne?”

“That’s a long story.” Jonathan ran a hand through his hair and scratched the back of his neck.

I spread my hands. “I’ve got all night.”

He looked me straight in the eye before starting his story. It was almost as if he was trying to read my thoughts again before divulging anything. Surprisingly, I kept my mind completely blank as he stared at me. When he was satisfied, he cleared his throat.

“One thing you have to know about Julian is that he is attracted by money. My family was actually fairly well off to begin with, but after eighty plus years, it began to pile up. He had heard of my family and found out I was a vampire. Before I turned one hundred, he sought me out. Julian lives a very lavish lifestyle and prefers to keep wealthy company. It was all fun and games for a while. We had any women we wanted, we traveled, and stayed in his enormous mansion. I was young; I thought I was living the good life.” Jonathan turned back to the yard for a moment. It seemed that his story was about to take a turn. Obviously, things hadn’t turned out so well, or he wouldn’t have been sitting next to me. Despite his lack of breath, Jonathan sighed and continued. “After I turned one hundred, Julian let me in on his secret. We were like the dynamic duo, so I became a sort of confidant for him. One day, Julian took me to a door in the mansion that had always been locked. He led me down a set of stone stairs to a dungeon. What I saw there changed me. Up until then, I felt invincible and was completely out of touch with my human side. Julian had people locked up down there. There were six women and two men. I asked him what they were doing down there. He told me not to worry; they were fed well. They all possessed rare blood types and Julian kept them in the dungeon for his personal ‘blood bank,’ as he called it. I was appalled. He told me that it was so difficult to find willing donors with rare blood types; and those he did find, he kept in his personal bedchamber.” Jonathan paused again, his head hung low.

What I heard humbled me. My spirits plummeted as I shook my head and couldn't imagine what those people had gone through. Poor Jonathan. It must have been a shock to see such terrible things. His solemn and regretful expression caused the little butterfly in my stomach to go crazy and multiply until my entire body yearned for him. Unconsciously, I started to reach out to him, but quickly retracted my hand as soon as I realized what I was doing.

“That’s why I need your help,” he continued. “I told Julian how I felt about what he was doing and he threw me out. I’ve been following him for quite some time; trying to get him to stop. He’s very pigheaded and stubborn; unwilling to change his ways. Julian is also one of those vampires who think we’re a super-human race, which makes us superior to normal humans. He’d lock all the humans up if he had the chance.”

“So what are you going to do now?” I asked, attempting to keep my feelings check and subdue the butterflies that swarmed in my belly.

“Well,” he hesitated. It seemed there was already another plan in the works, but he wasn't sure if he could tell me. “Actually, Julian has already contacted me about you.”

“What?” How was that possible? In my explorations of the house in the past couple of days, I had yet to see a single phone; how had Julian contacted Jonathan? The fact that they discussed me and Jonathan hadn’t talked to me about it left me feeling a little hurt and bemused.

“Julian wants to make a deal. He’ll let his prisoners go if I give him you.” Jonathan’s face was emotionless, not letting me see if there was more to it than that. A sudden change in his eyes, however, gave me the impression that he’d already made a decision.

The butterflies instantly died away and I let out a mournful sigh. “You’ve told him yes, haven’t you?” He only nodded. “When were you planning on letting me in on this little deal? So, am I just supposed to go with him without a struggle, or what? That’s what you call helping you? These situations don’t usually work out for the bait. What happens after that? Am I supposed to live with some arrogant vampire who’ll call me his pet or something?” Quickly, I stood up, furious that Jonathan hadn’t come to me before deciding my fate. He seemed surprised at my words and stood up as well.

“No, you don’t understand.” Jonathan took my shoulders. I looked away, unable to look to the face of the man who had sold me like a piece of property. “I was trying to work out a plan and wanted to find a good way to tell you.”

Turning my head back, I glared at him. “And you couldn’t let me in on the plan? You can’t possibly save me from him without breaking the deal. As soon as you take me back, he’ll go and retrieve his prisoners.”

“That’s the dilemma. But if I take care of him once and for all, then he won’t be a threat anymore.” A look of worry and regret washed over his face. Jonathan's brow furrowed together as he gently squeezed my shoulders.

My gaze softened as I looked up at him. “So, you’ll just kill your ex-best friend?”

His shoulders slowly rose in a heavy shrug as he shook his head. “I don’t know. It wouldn’t be easy; Julian is a very powerful vampire.” As he drifted off at the end of his sentence, his left eye scrunched and his head tilted as if he heard something off in the distance. Suddenly, Jonathan’s head shot up and his cobalt eyes shifted to an icy blue.

“What is it?” My intense gaze followed his to the yard. A swift breeze crossed us and I smelled them.

Looking confused, his eyes darted back and forth between the tree line at the back of the yard and me. “Julian’s coming to get you.”

“What? Now?”

Jonathan nodded. His unsure expression told me that this definitely wasn’t part of the plan. Julian had to have taken matters into his own hands to get what he wanted.

It didn’t take long for Jonathan and me to get from the roof of the house to the ground. There was only a small drop to the roof of the back porch and then to the plush grass. I bit my lip nervously and wondered what was going to happen.

“Jonathan, what do I do?” We stood there for a moment and watched the tree line in waiting for figures to appear.

If Jonathan was nervous, he certainly didn’t look it. His icy eyes continued to dart back and forth. “You’re probably going to have to fight them. I don’t plan on giving you up now.”

“Do we need to tell Layla?” My body was stiff and on edge. Half of me was frightened for my life, but the other half was raging with adrenaline and ready for a fight.

He shook his head, but didn't look to me since he was concentrating on keeping an eye out for intruders. “They already know and are on their way out here right now.”

As soon as I was about to ask how they knew, the deadening sound of a door slamming caused my head to whirl around. Seven figures darted out into the yard. Their icy eyes and gleaming teeth showed their readiness for a confrontation. Layla stepped up next to Jonathan.

“Julian?” she inquired.

“Yep.”

“Soon?”

“Very soon.”

“I thought that—“

“I thought so too, but he’s changed plans. Apparently, he can’t wait to take possession of Evie, and he didn’t come alone.” Jonathan’s hands clenched tightly, making his pale knuckles even whiter.

I sniffed the air to see if I could tell how many there were. There were so many different smells from the grass, nearby wildlife, and organic matter littering the ground that mixed in with the vampire smells that made it difficult for me to discern how many were about to show up. “How many are there?” Shifting my attention to Jonathan, I searched his determined countenance for a glint of hope.

He thought for a few seconds before answering. “About ten, besides himself. I’m surprised he even showed up.”

“How long before they get here?” I watched the tree line for any signs of an approach; I didn’t see any. As I looked back to Jonathan, he pointed back to the trees. The next melancholy voice I heard was not his.

“It won’t be too much longer, my dear.” He had long, dirty blonde hair tied back at the base of his neck. His cruel, translucent amber eyes made me nervous. From his severe posture to his patent leather boots, he absolutely reeked of arrogance. The long cloak he wore tightly around him made his tall figure look even more slender. Five rather menacing, muscular vampires flanked each side of him.

“Julian,” Jonathan half growled, in an attempt to hold back his rage. “I’m surprised you showed up. I didn’t think you liked getting your hands dirty.”

“Well, well, Jonathan Rigby,” Julian replied, holding out his hands. “I couldn’t resist getting the chance to chat with you, old pal. Besides, I wanted to make sure I succeeded in getting what belongs to me.” With his last comment, he looked from Jonathan to me.

His icy gaze bored into mine, causing my body to freeze. Even though I tried desperately to hold my composure, it was becoming increasingly difficult, as it felt like my heart was going to stop. A fear that I had never felt before took hold of my entire body as I unwillingly held Julian’s gaze. My mind was being infiltrated, and I couldn’t make myself look away. It was almost as if he probed my mind for weaknesses in hopes of controlling me. Jonathan seemed to notice my tense state and lightly shook my shoulder. Finally free, I put my hands up to my eyes and shook my head in attempts to rid the violated feeling I felt.

Julian looked to the blonde vampire next to him that I remembered to be Philippe. “She’s just as pretty as you described, Philippe. She is quite the mystery with that beating heart and breathing lungs. Those are extremely intriguing characteristics for a vampire. Why don’t you just hand her over, Johnny boy? This doesn't have to be difficult, you know. Then, I’ll let my guests go free and we’ll all be happy.”

Jonathan fiercely shook his head. “No; we were supposed to negotiate. You can’t just show up and expect us to let her go quietly. You know that as well as I, and I will fight you if I have to.”

Annoyed that Julian had almost controlled my mind, I held my ground next to Jonathan and stared Julian down. I was not going to let him into my head again. Julian looked to me, grinning maliciously. His left eye squinted ever so slightly. My thoughts imagined barbed wire fences, spikes, and vines in the forefront of my mind to keep him out. As he concentrated harder, so did I. After what seemed like an eternity, we stared each other down. Once he realized I wouldn't let up, he broke eye contact and chuckled as he glanced to the fair-haired vampire again.

“This one was definitely worth the trip here. You have quite an eye, Phil. She’ll make a good addition to my collection of rarities. Boys, get them, but leave Jonathan to me. And if you put as much of a scratch on her, I’ll kill you myself.”

Jonathan and Julian continued to face each other as the ten vampires rushed passed me to attack my friends. One stopped before me and attempted to grab my arm. I quickly brushed his arm away and punched him in the jaw. He went for me again and I kicked him fiercely in the stomach. He flew back and hit the grass hard. Then, I briefly looked behind me to see how Layla fared. She fought off two of Julian’s thugs at once. They were twice her size, and yet, her movements flowed with ease to block theirs. The other members of the household seemed to hold up just as well. Noelle had a bit of trouble with a copper haired vampire until Chase rushed to help her. He suddenly whipped out a pointed stick and rammed it into the vampire’s chest. The man simply laid on the ground, his fingers twitching slightly. Even before I turned back towards Julian, I sensed the thick tension between him and Jonathan. There was such a history between them, but their intense gazes shouted how much they now loathed each other.

“You know you can’t beat me.” Julian taunted Jonathan with his smug expression.

With each harsh word, Jonathan tensed more and more. I suspected there were even worse comments exchanged from mind to mind. Jonathan seemed to concentrate on something. As I cocked my head to look at his face, Julian instantly left my line of sight. Before I had time to wonder where he went, a figure grabbed me roughly from behind. Julian wrapped his arms tightly around my torso, pinning my arms to my sides. In his death grip, I discovered first hand how strong Julian was. When Jonathan tried to approach, Julian picked me off the ground and backed away.

Jonathan reached out with one hand, looking worried. “Julian, let’s just talk about this.”

I felt Julian brush against my hair as I struggled in his grasp. There was no way I was going to let him smell my hair. With all my might, I kicked, attempted to scratch, and flung my head around so Julian would release me. My flailing seemed to work, as Julian had more and more difficulty keeping me restrained. I was hoping that Jonathan would swoop in and attack Julian, but he hesitated. As I continued to struggle, I looked to Jonathan. I hoped that he would listen to my thoughts as I yelled at him in my mind to get Julian off me, or at least do something.

“You know,” Julian began as he wrapped one arm around my neck, halting my movements. “The nice thing about being one of the undead is that I have no need to breathe.”

Jonathan stiffened as Julian held me still. I swallowed hard and whimpered against the toned arm constricting my throat. When his arms were only about my chest, I was free to move the rest of me. Now, however, I feared to move. Julian truly was a cruel man and something told me that if I continued to struggle, he might decide to test my limits beyond strangulation.

“Don’t I have a say in any of this?” I inquired around Julian’s elbow.

Julian laughed heartily. “Of course you don’t, my dear. You belong to me now. Don’t try anything Old Boy. She’s a little more delicate than you let on, my hands may slip.”

Nervously, I glanced towards Julian’s hands; they were strong and powerful, and tipped with long, sharp fingernails. Deciding I didn't want to be a victim, I turned my head towards his elbow. He only wore a light silk shirt under his cloak. I opened my mouth and clamped down on Julian's right forearm. His dark blood rushed in my mouth. It tasted different than human blood. It had a stronger, metallic tang. Terrible and somehow wrong. Julian cried out and released me. I elbowed hard him in the stomach and lunged forward. Jonathan reached out to me. Before I could reach him, someone grabbed the waist of my pants. I nearly fell forward when my lower half jolted to a stop. Julian snarled and wrapped his good elbow around my neck. Then he smacked me upside the head.

"You little..." Julian mumbled some choice profanities at me as he regained control. He must have decided it wasn't a good idea to stay too much longer because he began to walk me around Jonathan.

I looked to his entrancing blue eyes for comfort. He only looked defeated. I continued to stare into his cobalt eyes, willing my thoughts to tell him to come after me. Over and over I thought, Don’t you give up now, I’m counting on you to rescue me from this arrogant ass. Suddenly, something in his eyes changed. Jonathan smiled and nodded.

I could have sworn I heard, I will come for you, as Julian held me before him and backed to the trees. Just before we reached the edge, Julian stopped. I wanted to see his expression, but with his tight grip on neck, I couldn't move my head enough to see.

However, I did hear an arrogant smile in his voice. “You know, Johnny boy, I don’t think I want you following us. Zeke, you know what to do.”

Just as Julian said Zeke’s name, two vampires grabbed Jonathan’s arms. With their free hands, they held his shoulders forward, preventing any escape. The vampire I guessed was Zeke stepped in front of Jonathan, and then looked to Julian, who nodded. Zeke reached down to pull something out of his boot. It was long, pointed, and its tip shined in the moonlight.

Julian sighed dramatically, “I so would have liked to kill you myself, Johnny boy, but say la vie. La vie! I crack myself up. If you’ll notice, that’s a silver stake; there’ll be no coming back from that one.” Julian turned my head so I could see his face. “Funny thing, silver, did you know vampires are allergic to it? Normally, a stake will only paralyze the body; but if it’s made of silver, it leeches into the blood stream and will eventually kill the poor unfortunate soul who happened to find its unforgiving tip. I find it immensely satisfying to know that he shall die a slow, painful death even if I’m not the one who plunges the stake into his chest.”

Zeke strode towards Jonathan until they were face-to-face. Jonathan struggled hard against his restraints. He then looked to me with fear in his eyes. I watched Jonathan’s eyes widen and fill with pain as Zeke thrust the stake into his abdomen. As he fell to his knees, I slumped in Julian's arms and whimpered. The stake still stuck out of his body when Zeke strode away, proud of himself. As Jonathan fell back, I tried desperately to rip myself from Julian’s grasp. He only tightened the lock he held on my neck and dragged me away. I craned my head, looking for any sign of Layla and the others. Sadly, Julian took no delay in getting me into the forest and to the car that lay in waiting close by.

Julian shoved me roughly into the car and quickly got in beside me. The large backseat looked like the one in the car Jonathan had, with two black leather benches facing each other. I whirled myself around to sit across from Julian, wanting to be as far away from him as possible. Seeing the door handle, I yanked at it several times and nothing happened. Damn child safety locks! In the darkly tinted windows, I was only able to stare at my reflection as we drove away. Closing my eyes, I tried to hold back the tears that welled up inside me. As I turned towards the window, I slouched down and crossed my arms. In the window, the back seat appeared empty, but I still felt Julian watching me.

He crooned, “Don’t be like that; it had to be done. We’ve been at each other's throats for as long as you’ve been alive. One of us had to die eventually. Since you’re going to be staying with me for a while, why don’t you tell me about yourself?”

I sniffed and turned my nose up at the window, refusing to answer. Julian attempted to play nice, but I saw right through him. Once I saw his nasty side, there was no way I would fall for his endeavors to charm me.

“You can’t stay silent forever.” His voice got a little angrier.

I continued to stare at my reflection in the window. “If you’re so smart and powerful, you should know everything about me already.”

Julian inhaled and exhaled slowly, as if he was trying to keep his cool. “It’s not like there are records of you anywhere. What about your mother?”

“My mother’s dead.”

“Really?" He sounded intrigued. "Was your mother a vampire?”

I nodded, still avoiding his gaze.

“Interesting. Therefore, I’m guessing you have no other family. Then you might as well stay with me since you don’t have anyone else.”

“Thanks for rubbing it in.” My sadness was turning into severe contempt. It seemed that I had no alternative. If all of my friends were dead, where did I have to go? My head fell at the thought of Jonathan. I had just begun to learn more about him, and in an instant, it was gone. All I could think of was the look in his eyes the moment the stake pierced his flesh. His eyes seemed to glaze over and flash between icy and blue.

Not long after, the car began to slow its intense speed. As soon as we stopped, the door I wasn’t leaning against opened. Julian swiftly got out. Then my door opened, almost making me fall out of the car. Arms hoisted me up and pulled me along. I looked up to see a mansion at least three times larger than the manor that I had recently taken up residence in. It looked like a fortress; barred windows, stone walls, and a pair of guards in front of a covered main entrance.

The guard on the left side of the door spoke, “Sir, daylight is coming; you should get inside.”

Julian nodded and then stepped up next to me. He put an icy hand on my shoulder and pointed off to the right, speaking rather nonchalantly. “Over that way and around the corner is the kennel for my guard dogs. I have two sets; one for the day and one for the night. My night dogs are particularly special. I found that Dobermans are quite good, but vampire Dobermans are even better. They eat only the very best raw meat and do not hesitate to tear apart anyone who gets in their way. They only answer to me.”

I bit my lip, shivering at the thought. “How’d you get vampire dogs?”

He smiled crookedly, obviously proud of his accomplishment. “I’m a self-proclaimed scientist; I like to experiment. Any mammal can be turned, but it’s best to use the ones that can be controlled.”

It seemed that there was more to Julian than his uptight, arrogant exterior. I reminded myself not to underestimate him. Then I wondered if perhaps his reasons for kidnapping those people with rare blood types had another layer too.

The inside of the mansion was far more immaculate than the outside. Vibrant rugs lined the floors and paintings covered the walls. The long entrance contained a double staircase at the back. To the sides were hallways, leading down the length of the house. Julian began to walk me down the left corridor. Mysteriously, something about the smell of the air seemed familiar.

“So,” he calmly started. “Tell me more about your mother.”

I walked slightly behind him and stared forward. “There’s nothing to tell.”

“What was she like?”

“She was beautiful and she took care of me. She was very secretive about what she did while she was away.”

Julian seemed to be leading to something, but I wasn’t quite sure what it was. He continued to force me to talk about my mother and tell small details about her. When I made it clear that I didn’t want to talk about her, he moved to a different subject.

“What about your father then?”

“I don’t know anything about him either.” I furrowed my eyebrows, growing suspicious.

Julian stopped and smiled. “So you don’t know anything at all?”

Shaking my head, I grew annoyed with the endless questions and wondered if I could run back to the front door without getting caught.

He gazed off in the distance, speaking more to himself than me. “Isn't that something? I wonder what happened to him.” There was a smug look on his face again, as if he already knew the answer to his question.

Behind me, I heard the click-clack of heels on the marble floors. Before I turned around, Julian spoke again.

"Ah, here she is now. I believe we shall now find the answers to the questions you've been mulling over for a very long time."

I quickly whirled around to come face to face with the last person I ever expected. My mother.

In conclusion..."Blood Secrets: Part 4"