Page 4 of Midlife Vampire Unexpected

He hunched over his leg using his hands to stem the flow of blood from the bullet wound.

“You didn’t have to shoot me,” he said.

“I didn’t want you putting up resistance.” I glared as I reached towards him to pull his hands behind his back. His hands whipped off his wound and grabbed my wrists. He propelled himself up from the chair and flung me back against the wall. I fell to the ground, the wind knocked out of me.

“Lady, I’m not going anywhere with you,” he growled.

With shock I saw he was standing on his wounded leg. “My name is not Lady. It’s Deputy Preston.” I clambered to my feet. This perp was going to put up a fuss.

“Unfortunately, for you, Deputy, you’re dead. You were killed by the vampire Xavier Santiago as he tried to feed on you to keep himself alive. Fortunately for us and the world in general, Xavier died.” Antonio didn’t seem interested in escaping me in the slightest. In fact, he turned his back on me and began cleaning up his bowl.

“He didn’t die of natural causes, though,” I insisted. “He died because he was stabbed with a wooden stake through his heart.” I listened to the words coming out of my mouth. This guy had literally staked an old man who had been sucking my blood. Antonio must think Xavier was a vampire and he was a vampire killer.

“You don’t remember anything, do you?” Antonio asked me.

“How are you moving?” I asked as he walked around on his leg as if I hadn’t just shot him. “How did that bullet wound heal?”

Antonio finished rinsing the dishes and turned on me. “Do you remember anything?”

“I remember you staking the guy. I remember…” My voice faded as memories flooded back to me. “He was feeding on me. You staked him and…and…”

“You died.” Antonio’s broad shoulders shrugged.

The world had closed in on me. Dark... Black... Empty.

“But I was only out for a minute,” I murmured.

“I fed you his blood to bring you back to life. That’s how vampires do it. You must feed on your maker’s blood immediately. That’s how they turn you.”

I sat down in a rickety wooden chair. “You’re insane.” There was a niggling feeling in my gut telling me his words were truth.

“Look, Deputy, I’m sure it would be a very convenient if I was insane and none of this were true, but unfortunately for you, everything I’m telling you is the truth. He finished putting away the dishes and grabbed a rucksack that was lying in the corner. “If you want more blood, you can have it, but then we need to be going.”

“We don’t need to be doing anything.” I stood up and gathered my things. Trying to figure out my next move. The thought of more blood whetted my appetite. “Why are you feeding me blood?”

“You would have died if I hadn’t.”

“I am dead. That’s what you keep telling me.” I pulled my hair out from in front of my face.

“Right. I meant you would be dead dead.” Antonio shrugged. “Instead of undead dead.”

I sighed. “I just wish you made more sense.”

There was a deep knowing inside me that I wasn’t ready to admit to, but I could feel it like a hollow balloon floating inside my stomach and chest. My life had irrevocably changed because of one stupid decision I’d made to hunt hunted Xavier Santiago. But what Antonio was saying to me was impossible to believe. It was so hard to understand. My stomach growled.

“Would you like some more blood?” he asked dispassionately.

Blood.

“What sort of blood is it?”

“Bobcat blood. I shot an animal.” Antonio explained.

“You killed it?” I asked.

“No, I shot it with a dart and sedated it and then took some blood from it, enough to feed you for a day or two. The last thing anyone wants is you drinking human blood.”

A burst of nervous laughter erupted from my lips. “Drinking human blood. Are you crazy?” I asked, but as he put another cup of blood in front of me, I didn’t even hesitate to pick up the glass and suck it back in a big healthy draught.

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