Vampires of London: Books 1-3

Chapter Three

Chapter ThreeMichael could tell Anna had only grudgingly agreed to head back into her newly appointed bedroom with him. As they walked down the hall, he'd tried to explain everything he knew about the attack and what had followed, failing miserably.

"I'm not sure I understand," Anna said. "What exactly happened?"

Michael could hardly stand looking at her. Something about this woman—Anna, no last name, as she'd introduced herself—threw him off balance. He'd lost not just his game, but his entire sense of self around her. It was infuriating.

She was beautiful, but that was hardly a valid reason to lose himself in her presence.

"As I said, when I found you, you were in a bad way. There was really nothing I could do, other than perform the Ritual," he stammered.

Gone was the confident vampire who could walk into any bar, any party, any social function at all, and not just fit in effortlessly, but steer any interaction in his favor. Conversation, flattery, and seduction had not just been words in his vocabulary, they were all part of the same art Michael had sought to master over the years. Beautiful women were his thing, along with gourmet meals and fine wines. In his human life, he'd never succeeded at obtaining the high flying lifestyle he so craved, though not for lack of trying. It wasn't until Alexander had taken him in that he had found everything he'd been searching for. In immortality, he seemed to have the world at his feet.

But right now with Anna, none of it mattered. It was like his slate had been wiped clean. He couldn't even hypnotize her to save face. He felt completely and utterly inept.

"What are you telling me?" Anna demanded and stared at him with arms folded. "I don't remember any of this."

"I…" Michael tried to focus, but his mind didn’t cooperate. Instead of feeding him the necessary words to make her understand what had happened while she was unconscious, all he could think of was old memories.

Don't fly too close to the sun, you might get burned —these words rang in his ears, decades after he'd last heard his father say them. His parents had been the more practical, down-to-earth sort, who never understood his more materialistic ambitions. And although the context was quite different now, these words had never seemed more relevant to Michael than right at this moment.

Michael looked into her amber eyes, briefly, before looking away again.

"You basically died. Now you're reborn."

"I don't understand. What have you done to me?" She'd tensed up as she glared at him. Michael couldn't tell if her reaction was the result of fear or anger.

He shook his head; he wasn't explaining it quite right. "You're immortal. You're a vampire now."

"Vampires don't exist," Anna argued. "You must think I'm stupid."

Michael's frustration peaked. "Wanna bet? Anyway, you don't have to take my word for it. Go on, look at the facts."

Anna started pacing around the room. "Facts! How ridiculous. I wake up here alone with no memory of how I got here or where I'm from, hearing voices through the walls, with weird pointy things stuck to my teeth and you're trying to tell me… I don't believe it!"

She stopped in front of the mirror. "It's all a trick, it has to be. See! I can see my reflection, right there."

Michael sighed. This was never easy. But at least most people were somewhat lucid when they underwent the Ritual. They remembered, even if they didn't understand what they'd gone through.

Anna didn't even seem to remember who she had been in her human life.

"It's a lot to take in. I understand. You'll feel better once you feed," Michael said. He was trying his best to stay calm, he really was. By God, as attractive as she was, this woman really knew how to push his buttons.

"Feed? Don't tell me you expect me to drink blood next! Look, mister. I don't know who you think you are, but I'm not participating in this perverted little game of yours. I want to go home, right now!"

You're going to get burned, the little voice in Michael's head insisted. He shook his head, trying to silence it.

"By all means then, I'll take you home right now. Remind me, where exactly is home?" Michael snapped. He regretted his outburst as soon as he saw Anna's face.

She retreated and sat down on the bed and rested her head in her hands. Clearly, she had no idea how to answer his question.

"Look, I'm sorry. That wasn't fair," Michael said.

He approached her and hesitated a moment before touching her shoulder. He wanted to help her so badly, but at the same time, he was frustrated beyond belief.

She flinched and shook him off.

"I just don't get it. Is everyone insane around here?" Anna said.

Michael sighed and sat down next to her, making sure he kept a safe distance. "You could say that," he mumbled, more to himself than her.

Her hand trembled as she reached for her fangs, touching first one, then the other. She let out a soft ouch when she nicked her finger tip, causing it to bleed.

"I know it doesn't seem like it, but I did what I thought was best. You had been attacked. I found you when you were moments away from death, and I didn't know what else to do," Michael spoke softly. He was trying to convince himself of his words, as much as her.

"Assuming I believe you—which I don't—please explain everything again. I'm immortal? What does that even mean?" Anna turned to face him, then put her wounded finger against her lips and licked away the blood.

It was mesmerizing to watch.

Michael shook his head. He had to snap out of it. It was deeply inappropriate to think of her that way. "Uh, yeah. Of course. Well, it's much like the stories, except for the bit about having no reflection. You'll be awake at night, you need blood to survive, you won't age…"

Anna stopped and looked at her index finger, which was once again unmarked, as though she'd never wounded herself at all. Michael watched her from the corner of his eye.

"Sunlight, garlic, holy water, stakes through the heart, those are the only things that'll harm me?" Anna asked.

Michael let out a laugh, then quickly recovered. "Sorry. Well, sunlight will definitely kill you, garlic and holy water, not so much. A stake through the heart—that's very old school. I'm not sure what that'll do, maybe sting for a while?"

Anna frowned and turned to face him. "So I'll have to murder people to survive?" she asked. Her eyes were wide, giving her face a certain innocence. She had only looked this helpless back when she'd briefly regained consciousness back in that filthy alley.

Michael shook his head and tried to reach for her again, causing her to recoil.

She didn't trust him. Not that he could blame her.

"No, we don't kill. It's against the rules."

"So how do you drink blood then?" she asked.

"Well, as you get to grips with your new powers, you'll be able to hypnotize humans. They won't feel a thing."

She looked away from him and stared at the floor in front of the bed. "Okay…"

Michael relaxed a bit. Perhaps she was ready to accept the truth now.

"And the other guy I saw downstairs, he's a vampire too?" she asked.

"Yeah, Alexander. He found me when I was still a fledgling. Taught me everything I know."

She nodded and continued to stare at the floor in silence. Neither of them said a word for at least a minute.

Anna took a deep breath. "You lads are insane. There's no other explanation." She straightened her back and folded her arms again.

Michael opened his mouth to say something, but he had nothing. He rested his elbows on his thighs and shook his head. He'd done what he could. This woman was incredibly stubborn. She'd have to figure out the truth for herself.

He got up and walked toward the door.

"Wait, you're not leaving me, are you?" Anna called out behind him.

He gestured at her to wait. Realizing that actually he didn't need to follow the usual precautions that he took around humans, he broke into a sprint, straight to the kitchen downstairs. He grabbed a few cold cuts and a steak from the fridge, depositing the whole lot on a plate. Whether she liked it or not, Anna needed to feed. Hopefully she'd realize this as soon as she saw the meat.

He was back in her bedroom within the blink of an eye. He'd hoped that this little display of his superhuman speed would convince her, but when he looked at her, still sitting in place on the bed, he didn't see recognition in her eyes. Whatever he'd just tried to demonstrate, she hadn't noticed anything strange about it.

Michael wished he could ask Alexander for advice, but that wasn't an option. He'd taken Cat away for the week, in an attempt to keep her safe, and he was still angry with him to boot. Michael was on his own. They'd all ended up in an impossible situation together, thanks to his impulsive decision to turn this woman.

All he could hope for now was that Anna would see the truth and come around to accepting her new situation before Alexander returned. Otherwise… Well, otherwise Michael wasn't quite sure what would happen. He'd have to fix this situation he'd created. If Cat wasn't safe in the same house as Anna, he'd have to relocate her somehow.

And the entire conversation he'd just tried to have with Anna suggested was that she wasn't easily convinced of anything. How would he convince her to leave with him without creating a scene? What a headache.

Michael held the plate in her direction. "You must be hungry. Please, help yourself."

Anna eyed him suspiciously, then glanced down at the food. Her eyes rested on the raw steak.

Michael remembered clearly what it had been like when he was freshly turned. Every sense was almost painfully heightened. She wouldn't be able to resist the juicy meat, not for long anyway.

"It's raw," she said.

"You're very observant," he said, then immediately regretted his tone.

She glared at him, then looked back down at the plate.

"It'll do you good. If you don't believe me, that's fine. Try it and you'll find out for yourself," he added, doing his best to sound patient. It was difficult, nigh impossible. He wanted nothing more than to force her to eat it already. Why couldn't she just take his word for it?

After a few more seconds of indecision, Anna finally seemed to give in. She took the plate from him and sniffed the meat, closing her eyes as the scent of blood no doubt overwhelmed her senses. When she opened her eyes again, they had turned a deep shade of red.

Blood l**t. Finally.

That was how Michael had reacted too, when he had awoken a newly created vampire and stood face to face with his first meal. Only, there had been no one to guide him, no one to provide him with a safe meal option. He'd acted purely on instinct and almost killed the man he’d tried to drink from. It had been a disaster.

"Eat. Trust me," he urged.

Anna didn't hesitate any longer. She scarfed down everything on the plate, even l*****g off the juices that ended up on her fingers.

"Weird. I've never been much of a meat eater," she mumbled.

Michael took the plate from her and observed her as she pulled her legs up onto the bed and curled up against the pillows.

"So… sleepy…" she whispered.

Michael continued to watch her for a moment. That was what had happened to him too. It was quite a shock to the system, digesting your first meal after the change. Perhaps things between them would improve once she had more of a chance to rest.

She was quite something, even if she was his fledgling and he was her maker. Feisty, too. If only the circumstances of their meeting had been different…

"I'll be downstairs if you need me," he said.

"Mhmm."

Michael didn't look back as he left the room, pulling the door shut behind him. Out of habit, he checked the large grandfather clock on the landing. It was just before nine o'clock. Ordinarily, he'd be getting ready to go out by now. Not tonight, though.

His nights of carefree and unapologetic hedonism were over.

Michael had never been particularly responsible, but going forward, he wouldn't have a choice. And that realization worried him, possibly even more so than the prospect of having Anna argue with him some more upon waking up.