Page 111 of Once Bitten, Twice Mine

“You may not have a mortal lifespan anymore, but your attitude is fully mortal. You still think like them, and you’re not.”

“So, you are a vampire then. You feed on blood? Dr. Murnau was right about everything?” Dr. Gardner said, his voice still strangely distorted, but less angry than before.

“I don’t know about everything, but he was right that there was a vampire in town. Two vampires, but I’m the only one here now.”

“Did you kill Mr. Andrews?” Dr. Murnau asked.

“Yes, but he was a danger to all of the mortals here.”

“Vampires are real. I can’t believe it,” Mrs. Montgomery said, shaking her head.

“Did you think you were the only strange creatures out there? Vampires are only scratching the surface. There’s a whole world out there you don’t understand. Magic explains most things, but there are also other natural phenomena out there.”

Dr. Gardner crossed his arms. “I can’t believe magic is real. That’s preposterous.”

“And we just convinced Will no one wanted to steal his blood. He’ll be so upset to learn vampires are real.”

“He won’t have to worry about a vampire wanting his blood if he’s like you. You smell like roadkill. Not even a starving vampire would take a chance on you.”

“Because humans are what you’re interested in. So, what happens now? Will you pick off the village one at a time? Are we to act as your buffet?” Murnau’s eyes blazed, and Caroline could hear the anger threaded in his voice.

“No,” Valeria said. “I don’t have any interest in hunting people around here. I have adjusted my diet so the people in this village are safe.”

“And I’m supposed to believe that? Was The Count responsible for all of the killing before? How can I trust that you won’t lose control again? Or worse, grow bored and start killing for sport.”

“She’s not like that,” Caroline said. “We only want to live a quiet life.”

“You may be more than willing to lead a wolf into the hen house, but I’m not. If you want to trust a vampire, that’s your business, but I won’t let you use this town as a food source.”

“What, exactly, are you going to do about it?” Valeria asked, so calmly Caroline was worried. She was fairly confident she wouldn’t attack the doctor, but Valeria had never liked him, and she wasn’t sure how she would respond if he became a direct threat.

“I know how to capture and kill your kind. I caught The Count, and he was much stronger than you.”

Mrs. Thomas returned to the room holding Mrs. Montgomery’s forgotten notebook. She quickly took the item from the housekeeper and thanked her profusely. Everyone was quiet as Mrs. Thomas left; surely she felt the tension in the room, but she had no interest in sticking around to see what was happening.

“I will let you stay here until Mr. Andrews has been buried out of respect, but the moment he is in the ground, I expect your vampire to be gone. I will not have the people in this village be used as food again.”

Valeria opened her mouth to argue, and Caroline quickly took her hand. “I understand. We’ll be gone by then. I thank you for everything you’ve done for me and this village I love so much. I trust you will take care of everyone.”

Dr. Murnau’s face was severe, and she knew they were now on different sides, but he gave her a sharp nod. Maybe one day she could get him to see her side, when she explained more about how else vampires could eat, but he wouldn’t listen now. The wounds were still too fresh. He turned and left, and Dr. Gardner and Mrs. Montgomery left with him. Valeria didn’t relax until they both heard the carriage rolling down the gravel driveway.

“I’m sorry that he wants me to leave your home, cara. I understand if you send me away and stay with your parents.”

Caroline scoffed, “As if you could get rid of me. My parents can handle everything for now. I want the chance to see other places. We can come back here, but we’ll give Dr. Murnau some time to calm down.”

“I fear he may always hate vampires, but if anyone could get him to feel another way, I trust you could do it.”

Caroline blushed, her eyes flicking away for a moment before Valeria turned her chin back to her with the tip of her index finger.

“There is one last thing we should settle before we work on our itinerary,” Valeria continued.

“What’s that?”

“Do you want to be a vampire?”

It was the question she had been turning over since the previous evening—really, since the moment she realized what Valeria was—but it wasn’t until that moment she had a definite answer.

“I do, but not yet. I still want some time as a human and time to learn more about vampires and this whole other world you just teased me with. Is that all right?”