THE VAMPIRE UNDERGROUND

CHAPTER NINETEEN

CHAPTER NINETEEN

She closed her eyes and breathed through her nose. She felt the figure’s breath land against her neck. She wanted to fight back. She didn’t want it to end this way. But she was too weak. She couldn’t go on.

The breath lingered. She wondered if he was searching for the perfect spot. But as ten seconds became thirty, Brin opened her eyes. He hadn’t touched her.

Instead, he looked to be sucking on his own blood.

She stared at the creature in horror as he tore through his right wrist with his teeth and let the blood drip down his arm.

“What…”

He averted his eyes, both still bright red, to Brin, and he shoved his wrist up against her mouth. Droplets of ice cold—not warm—blood struck her tongue, and she wanted to gag. Even worse, the blood was black, not red. She turned her face to the right and let the blood splash against her left cheek.

“What are you doing?” Brin said.

“Drink,” he said, uttering his first word. His voice wasn’t low and scary like the other ones she had heard; his was smooth and calming.

“No! I won’t!”

“There’s no time,” he said, and he shoved his wrist back up against her mouth.

She looked back into his eyes. The red slowly faded back out. After a few seconds, only a hint of red in his eyes remained, now tiny sparkles buried deep inside his corneas.

Brin closed her eyes again. She didn’t want to vomit but knew it was a likely outcome to this unthinkable scenario.

She let more drops hit her throat.

“Good,” he said. “Keep going.”

More drops followed. She pressed her lips against his wrist and started slurping his blood like it was Cherry Coke. It was extra salty, not at all like the gloppy putrid flavor she was expecting, and she was able to keep it down without gagging or choking.

“Good,” he said, bringing his hands down to his sides.

She swallowed the last of it and stared forward. She felt the jolt of adrenaline first up top; it was as if she had taken fifteen Red Bulls. Her headache was gone, and her mind was now clear.

Then she sat up, without difficulty, not feeling any pain in her shoulders or arms or back. She didn’t even feel cold.

She jumped up to her feet and looked down in amazement. She could bend her knees and stretch her legs. She felt hypnotized with unwavering positive energy.

“It won’t last long,” he said. “Hurry.”

He started backing away.

“Wait,” Brin said. She didn’t reach out to him. She leapt forward and latched onto his coat. They were almost the same height, he an inch taller. “Where are you going?”

“I shouldn’t be here,” he said. “You shouldn’t be here.”

The loud rumbling returned, and the ground started to shake, again. She stared at the vampire, ready to ask for help, when he shook his arms out of her grasp and pushed her down to the ground.

“Hey!” she shouted.

She could feel the enormity of the supposed earthquake as her body sprawled out on the ground. It didn’t feel like anything was shifting underneath the soil; it felt like another world existed beneath her, waiting for her, watching her, wanting her to come down and join the party.