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Michel doesn't say anything but he does relax his arms around me just abit.
"She's new," the vampire says. "I heard your conversation and she sounds as if she isn't really your property just yet. That's why I came over. You'll have lots of fun with this one. A realchallenge."
"That she most definitely is," Michel says in reply but his voice is brusque and not inviting of any furtherconversation.
Then the vampire turns and is gone, moving so fast he would have blended into the shadows to a normal mortal, but with my night vision, I can follow him. He's off looking for someone to feed on – some poor blood whore in need of money or a fix of vampireblood.
"You did well, Eve. Congratulations," he says and squeezes me. It feels so good, so comforting. I truly feel safe with him. "You survived your first encounter with a vampire in thefield."
He takes my hand and pulls me deeper into the trees. Ahead in the moonlight, I see the same vampire with a woman in hisarms.
"That was fast," Isay.
"Shh," Michel says. "He can hearyou."
We watch as the couple embraces for a few moments and then part, the blood whore going off in the other direction from the vampire. It's a straight exchange – blood formoney.
Nothing different from prostitution and it makes me very sad with a sense of moral outrage that women are so vulnerable. Emotion fills me – grief that so many women are compromised, being so poor or addicted, or even just with tragic pasts, that compel them to sell themselves as prostitutes, either for sex orblood.
Michel squeezes my hand. "The oldestprofession."
When I think of them, my stomach clenches. Suddenly, I'm fearful because I'm afraid of how easy it would be for me to just lose myself in Michel, become his blood slave as well as his servant. How easily I could become one of these women, desperate, selling myself for it, willing to do anything to getit.
"It'sdisgusting."
"Why sohostile?"
"I don't like exploitation," I say, suddenlyangry.
"You won't become one, Eve. I'd never letyou."
"I'm really going to have to figure out how to create mentalblocks."
He sighs. "I thought you liked our connection," he says softly. "It's what we vampires do. It's as natural to us as breathing. Just remember that I can't compel you. I can't force you to do anything against your will. You have to choose to be mypet."
"I want to leave," I say, sadness filling me. I wrap my arms aroundmyself.
"We're not donehere."
But he follows me, not speaking. When we arrive at the car, he opens the door for me and I get in, buckling my own seatbelt. Once we're driving and I know no one can hear me, Ispeak.
"Tell me how I can block you out," Isay.
"No," he says after a hesitation, his voice soft. "Until this thing between us is settled, I need complete access to you so I can be certain. But one day, after it is, you can find your own blocks. I can't tell you what they'llbe."
We drive for a moment insilence.
"Eve," he says and his voice is firm. "I need to know how you are without you screening things, keeping things from me. I need to know what you're feeling so I can judge if you can do the job. If you can do 'us'."
I stare out the window at the darkened streets. As much as I want him, I don't know if I can do 'us' – at least, not in the way I think it's going tobe.
"Can you take me home?" I say, emotion filling me. "I don't feel well enough to work anylonger."
He says nothing, taking the highway to get back to my apartment, the rest of the trip passing in silence. When he stops the car in front of my building, I go to the front entrance without saying anything to him. I'm seriously freaked about this power he has over me – the power he wants over me and the way it appeals to something deep inside ofme.
"Eve," he says and stops me, taking my arm. "Don't be mad at me. I have to do this. I have to know if you're strong enough. If you can handle thisworld."
"Well?" I say, and try to slip my arm out of his. "CanI?"
