Page 20 of Bound in Blood
Logan nodded in understanding at that. “Yes. Vampire fast food. Makes sense. Do youhaveto take all the blood from your victim when you feed?”
“Not recommended, no.” Marco looked away sheepishly. “Last night was a lapse in judgment. Just a pint is more than enough. The only vampires that drain their targets are either feral or evil.”
“Feral?” Logan cocked his head in confusion.
“Vampires who succumb to bloodlust, usually by refraining from feeding. They turn against their will, but deny their base instinct, and it turns their brain to mush.” Marco grimaced.
“Like a vampire zombie?”
Marco nodded. “That’s one way to put it, yes.”
“Poor ferals.” Logan frowned. “I’m glad I figured out the fang thing.”
Marco opened his mouth to apologize again, but Logan seemed to recover quickly, jumping straight back into his line of questioning.
“Alexei asked permission before he entered my apartment.” He tilted his head thoughtfully.
“Yes.”
“Is that a requirement, or was he being polite?” Logan glanced over at the door, no doubt thinking about how he’d accidentally explicitly invited them in the night before.
“A requirement. Only with human homes. Consent must be given willingly and without duress. Public or common spaces and any private residence owned by other vampires is fair game.” Marco smiled. “Strange rule, I know.”
“I think that is arguably one of the least strange things that has happened today.” Logan paused for just a moment, thinking of his next question. “Do you have to take all of someone’s blood to turn them?”
“No. Just a drop will work. Think of it like equivalent exchange. I take from you, then you take from me,” he paused. “Binding, kind of.”
Once they had passed all the standard questions, Logan got into ones that Marco hadn’t ever thought of. Yes, vampires can see their reflection in mirrors. No, Logan wouldn’t ever be able to turn into a bat. Yes, he could still cross running water. (Marco had never heard of that myth before.) No, Marco had no extra power over Logan as his Maker. (Not that he’d use it, anyway.)
“What about you?” Logan finally asked, after nearly an hour of questioning.
“Whataboutme?” Marco replied, blinking back his confusion. He didn’t know he’d agreed to personal questions, and he wasn’t entirely sure he wanted to answer any.
“How did you and Mateo turn? Was it at the same time?” Sometime during his questioning, Logan had laid his head down in Marco’s lap, and now, as he was blinking up at him adorably, Marco almost wanted to answer him.Almost.
He opened his mouth, ready to attempt a deflection, when the front door swung open, a much happier Mateo crossing over the threshold. “Guess who’s back from robbing a hospital!” He said in a sing-song tone, before glancing over at Logan, head stillin Marco’s lap, Marco’s hand rested on their mate’s chest. “You two look cozy.”
“I was asking Marco how you two were turned,” Logan explained. “I think I’ve run out of lore questions. Now I want to know who the vampire gods forcibly married me to.” He looked up at Marco, smiling a real, genuine smile.
Hetrusted them,Marco realized, which is crazy, considering all Marco alone had done to him. His throat tightened at the thought. The guilt that had sat like a heavy weight in his chest since he turned Logan was slowly twisting into something warmer, something terrifying but comforting at the same time.
Mateo, of course, immediately went for levity. “Vampire gods, huh? First a lawyer and now a priest. Marco, our mate contains so many multitudes.” He plopped down on the couch at Logan’s feet. “Better make peace with it,tesoro,you’re stuck with us for eternity. No god, vampire, or otherwise, can save you now.”
Logan giggled, flexing his feet against Mateo’s thighs. “Yeah, yeah, eternal damnation. Whatever. Answer the question, please.”
“Sorry, kid. We don’t get into tragic backstories until at least the third date.” Mateotsked,“And inviting us up to your tiny apartment after work doesn’t count.”
“We’re literally… okay fine. How old are you two, exactly? Can you answer that, at least?” Logan asked, only slightly annoyed at Mateo’s deflection. Marco was quietly glad he didn’t push. He hated that story.
“Hm… I mean, we were born in 1914. I lost count,” Mateo hummed, tilting his head in mock contemplation.
Now it was Marco’s turn to roll his eyes. “That is because you’re an idiot,Teo.”
Logan snorted. “Wow. And here I thought you didn’t look a day over ninety-nine.”
Mateo’s jaw dropped, hand over his heart in mock offense. “Oh my God. You’re a bully. Marco, he’s bullying me!”
“You’ll live,” Marco deadpanned, his hand making its way into Logan’s hair just as it had before their nap. Logan leaned into the touch, his eyes closing slightly. Marco could feel the habit forming as he wound his fingers around the individual strands, but it was fine. Logan’s hair was soft, and he didn’t seem to mind.
