AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I hit him again, and this time, my aim is moreaccurate.
"Your strength still isn't there." He grabs me and has me in his arms once more, my hands tightly confined, his grip a bit painful, biting a bit harder on my neck so that it actuallyhurts.
"You have to hit harder or you'll just make a surface wound, and that will only make a vampire angrier," he says, his mouth now at my ear. "Remember, you'll have to go up under the sternum. The other option is to come down between ribs," he says and demonstrates, "but you need to really practice that one before you can count on it and you need to use your bodyweight."
He releases me once more and I think he doesn't realize how he affects me. I stand across from him, my pulse increased, breathing moreheavily.
"Why not just use acrossbow?"
"They're good," he says and nods. "You should always have one in your weapons cache. But you can't carry one around with you all the time. You need to be ready to fight with whatever you have at anytime."
"Why do you think I'm in suchdanger?"
"You read our personnel files," he says and it's the first time he's mentioned my little breach of security. Then I remember that every single Adept who's worked with the SCU has died. "Now that you're working for the SCU, you're a target. Other vampires will eventually find out you're an Adept and might just decide to steal you fromme."
"So I'm yourproperty?"
"Yes," he says, his face dark. He steps closer and cups my cheek. "No, not really. You're under my protection. I told you how this has to work, Eve. All in or allout."
"I want all in," I say, intending the double meaning, smiling and he makes that little throat sound and smiles in spite ofhimself.
"You are so impatient," he says and grabs me, and pulling me against his body, holding my hands behind my back. My heart jumps, my body responding to his intensity. God, he makes me dizzy just touching me… He kisses me, hard and passionate. Then he kisses my neck, holding his lips there, his breathingharsh.
Then he pushes me away and I'm standing there, my own breathing fast andshallow.
"Now, concentrate. We don't havelong."
"How can I concentrate when you do that tome?"
"How can I not do that to you when you display your dimples like some temptress?" he says,grinning.
But then he's back to business and stands at the ready again, waving meon.
"Look around you when you're in a compromised situation," he says. "If you feel under threat, you'll fall into a fight trance. Look for anything wooden you could use as a stake. If you need to, break a broomstick, or anything else wooden. Even a pencil will work if it goes directly into the heart. If there's nothing wood, use something metal. It won't kill the vampire permanently, but it'll give you a few moments to escape while the vampirerecovers."
"Why is that?" I say, looking at the stamp in my hand. "Whywood?"
"It's organic. Metals don't kill vampires, although silver weakens us. Our bodies repel metals except silver, which if it remains in our bodies, draws out our strength. Sure, metal weapons create a wound, but that wound heals rapidly, in moments. Unless you stake us with wood first, you can't cut our heads off. Remember – our bones are very hard. All you'll end up doing is making a hideous wound that will heal in a very short time so it's pointless to try," he says, his face dark. "Unless you want just to torture us, and if that's what you want, use silver. It burns and directly saps our strength. Now enough delaying. Attack me once again. This time, hit harder. You've got to push the stake up and into the heart. It takes considerable strength so you might want to use your bodyweight to assist. Jump atme."
He crouches down a bit and waves me on again. I'm embarrassed to have to trythis.
"Don't make me get rough, Eve. Believe me, I can and will. This is deadlyserious."
"I can't do this," I say and hold up the stamp. "It's toosilly."
He stands up straight and sighs, then goes to the weapons case on the wall. He unlocks the padlock, and withdraws a short steel dagger about four inches long. He returns and hands it tome.
"Usethis."
The blade is smooth and sharp and short. I turn it over in my hands. "You want me to attack you withthis?"
"No," he says. "I wanted you to attack me with the stamp, but it's too silly for you. I thought maybe a dagger would be less silly. Maybe you'd take thisseriously."
"I can't," I say, shaking my head. "I can't really stabyou."
"Eve, you must. I'm leaving and you'll be in danger. Please understand I won't be here to protectyou."
He looks so earnest, his voice so insistent, I feel a lump in mythroat.
