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"No, not as long as you don't drink from a vampire's vein. But listen—things could go wrong. I'm much stronger than she is. I can keep her from killing you. Or at least, I'm ninety-nine percent sure I can. I won't give you a blanket guarantee." I didn't add that she still had the chance to go rogue, that she could choose to turn toward the dark side of vampirism. If she did, I'd be forced to stake her and end her life forever.
Tim yanked off his shirt. "How much will she drink?"
I stared at his bare chest, which was hairless and ripped to a tight six-pack. "Man, you take care of yourself," I blurted out without thinking.
He smiled, ducking his head. "Jason likes me fit."
"Does he know that you're here?"
"Nah," he said. "He wouldn't… I don't think I'm going to tell him."
"Right." From the few times I'd met Jason, I could guarantee that Tim would be single if his fiancé ever found out what he was up to. "Here's the rundown. Your best bet is to offer her your wrist. That way she can't accidentally break your neck in her excitement and I'll have better access to control her. Don't be surprised if she doesn't recognize you. Don't let her scare you—when she first wakes up she'll be frightened and hungry. Eventually she'll remember who she is."
"Menolly!" Camille's voice held an urgency that immediately caught my attention.
I whirled. Erin had gone into convulsions. "Everybody but Tim and me get out. Wait in the main room. Don't come in until I tell you to."
Chase and Morio obeyed immediately, but Delilah and Camille hesitated. "Now, damn it! Get out! Let me focus on helping her instead of having to worry about your butts." That got them moving. They shut the door behind them.
I turned to Tim. "Stay in the corner until I call for you. And you'd better decide now, for real, if you want to go through with this. Because if you chicken out, I'm going to have to stake her and it would be more merciful to just get it over with before she regains consciousness."
Tim blanched. "Erin took me in when my wife found out I was gay and kicked me out. She yanked me out of the closet and forced me to be honest with Patty and with myself. And she helped me rebuild my relationship with my little girl. It was hard as hell and I had to face the fact that I hurt a lot of people with my deception. But she was there to help me pick up the pieces and put them back together again. I owe her big time, Menolly."
With a nod, I crept over to Erin. Bloody foam was trickling from the side of her mouth. Transformation was ugly, that was a fact. It was messy, it was dirty, far from the delicate swoon portrayed in late night B-movies. Neither was it the sensual ride of a lifetime—at least not until after the change was over. Until the newborn drank and came to consciousness, it was a lot like a diabetic seizure.
"Erin, Erin, can you hear me?" I didn't try to hold her head. She'd lash out, and at this point a few bumps on her noggin weren't going to hurt her.
Erin opened her eyes and snapped up into a sitting position. She started to turn around, then I saw a familiar look cross her face. Not all newborns succumbed to panic when they realized they couldn't breathe, but apparently Erin was my daughter in more than just blood. She clawed at her throat, eyes wide with fear.
"Stop—Erin, stop! You'll be okay. Quit trying to breathe. You don't need to breathe. Relax, just relax."
Her shoulders shaking, she licked her lips as she quit struggling. Then she looked at me again, and flinched. I'd done the same with Dredge when I first awoke. Every vampire knew her sire. Every vampire was bound to her sire in a way that precluded all other oaths, even to the gods.
I could see the hunger in her eyes, the confusion and bewilderment as she groveled on the floor in front of me and, for a moment, I hated myself. Thoroughly, absolutely hated myself for what I'd done to her.
"Is it time?" Tim asked quietly, and the confidence in his voice shored me up. I glanced at him and saw, not revulsion, but relief as he watched Erin struggle. He caught my look of surprise. "She's my friend. She'd be dead without you. Let me help her, please?"
Not sure what to say, I nodded. "Come forward, slowly." I knelt in back of her and, with one hand, restrained her arms behind her. With the other, I stroked her hair. She'd be weak until she'd fed. She didn't struggle, merely glanced over her shoulder at me, looking for guidance. She was doing better than most newborns, that was for sure. I could tell that, hungry or not, there was already a spark of recognition beyond the fact that I was her sire.
Tim held his wrist out to her. "Erin, do you know me? It's Tim. I'm here to help. You can drink from me. It's okay." His voice was soothing, far from the bray that he used for his drag persona, Cleo Blanco. I could imagine him reading bedtime stories to his daughter with this voice.
Erin seemed to respond to it, too. She tilted her head, looking at him curiously. Her gaze never leaving his face, she leaned forward, eyeing his wrist, and her fangs extended.
Gently reassuring her as she placed the tips against his wrist, I guided her away from the main artery. She didn't need to drink from the main well. As the tips of her fangs sank into his flesh, Tim gasped and closed his eyes.
"Does it hurt?" I asked as Erin began to suck, licking it to stimulate the flow.
He let out a shuddering gasp. "No… no, it doesn't hurt. It feels like heaven. Oh God, I never expected this." His voice breathless, he looked about ready to come right there.
I felt a sudden surge of pride. Erin was so far beyond where I'd been at her stage. Dredge had turned me loose hungry, with barely enough blood to keep me going. I'd gone on a rampage all the way home.
After Erin started to settle down and I felt her energy stabilize, I gently disengaged her from Tim, who had dropped to the floor into a stupor, oblivious to his own danger. Erin struggled at first when I pulled her away, then glanced up at me and let go of his wrist.
"Tim. Tim!"
Startled, he blinked and looked up at me from his prone position. "Huh?"
"Get back. Slowly crawl away from her. Now. She's had enough for the moment." I waited until he rolled away, then gently turned Erin around to face me. "Erin, do you know who I am?"
