Chapter 20: Chapter 20

The vampire's heart is a funny thing. It beats much slower than a human’s and is only used to circulate blood in the body, not to keep it alive. Yet mine was now beating twice as fast as any human’s and threatening to jump out of my chest. It was also breaking into tiny pieces. The excitement I felt at seeing Mira again had been easily replaced with an unfamiliar pain. I pushed her away when she offered herself to me freely, yet now that she had moved on I wanted nothing more than to take her back. But was it the right thing to do?

This ongoing battle between what I wanted and what was right was driving me insane. It was wrong to deprive her of a life she deserved, a life free from the darkness that had become my twin. It was a travesty to think of her as mine. Someone like me, a child of the eternal midnight, didn’t deserve to have someone pure and unblemished. Still, my entire being craved her touch, her love, her all.

The chasm between our two species had never been as evident as it was now. She was alive, I wasn’t. And she was with one of her kind, a living, breathing human being. I should be happy for her. I should be happy for myself, too. I got away clean, didn’t I? Why then did I feel like tearing the man holding her hand limb from limb? Good thing I couldn’t go to them even if I wanted to. They were on hallowed ground, a place I couldn’t set foot in. Just another thing that highlighted the yawning gap between us.

The desire to have her in my arms again was suddenly overwhelming, pushing my self-control to its limits. Her hand should’ve been holding mine, not someone else’s. Her smile should’ve been directed at me, not at the smiling mortal beside her. When she glanced my way, I held my breath. Did she see me? Did I really want her to see me? No, not really. Still, I knew she felt my presence. It was in the way she stiffened and paused, her eyes searching for mine in the dark. I moved away, deep into the shadows where her human eyes couldn’t follow me. The man turned to her when she halted, the concern in his eyes twisting my heart anew. He cared for her. And it was more than I could say for myself. I wanted her, more than I’d ever wanted anyone, but did I truly care for her?

Yes, truly and without a doubt, my inner self replied far too quickly. More than enough to let her go? I insisted. Perhaps. The answer surprised me. When was the last time had I been unsure of myself? In all my years as a vampire, I had been cocksure, always in control. I took what I wanted and discarded it when I wanted, without consideration or remorse. The last person I cared about was Rose, my betrothed. But that was from another life. And what I felt for her paled in comparison to what I was feeling now for Mira.

I will let her go, as soon as the danger is over, I said to myself.

A flimsy excuse, but it was the best I could come up with. For now, I would watch and protect her from a distance. I would do my best to keep her from knowing about the very real danger she was in. I would keep her safe, even from me.

The man led Mira out of the alcove and they reunited with their other companions. My nerves tingled at the possibilities. They were leaving the sacred protection of their church. They would be out in the open, vulnerable. Did I dare approach Mira? Would she be happy to see me? Or would she shun me as I deserved?

No, approaching her was a bad idea. I didn’t know what I would do if she rejected me. I would only be putting the other mortals at risk of suffering my anger. My temper was one of the things I still struggled with. I couldn’t take the chance.

Stay away, as far away as possible, I told myself.

I stayed in the shadows and clandestinely followed Mira and her friends until they reached a sprawling gated property. I’d never seen Mira so happy and relaxed, it made my heart ache. She was always smiling, even laughing, something I had not been able to coax out of her the last few days we were together. A new emotion was growing inside me, something I didn’t think I was capable of. Jealousy. I was jealous of her friends, jealous of the man walking beside her, casually talking to her like he’d known her his whole life. I envied his being alive and human. I envied his beating heart and warm body.

As they passed through the gate, Mira shivered. The man quickly took off his jacket and slung it over Mira’s shoulders. After it was in place, his hands started rubbing Mira’s arms. I couldn’t see Mira’s face, so I wondered if she was smiling up at him, grateful for his attention. It took all of my learned control to stop myself from pummeling him to the ground. I couldn’t make a scene here, I didn’t have the right. Mira wasn’t mine. There had been no commitment between us. And I practically threw her out when she declared her feelings for me.

What’s wrong with you? Mira belongs to us, my evil self said, asserting itself.

Shut up, fool! She belongs to no one! I snarled back.

Fuck, had I gone mental? Why was I arguing with myself?

Mira paused at the door and glanced back, her eyes darting across the street to where I stood hidden behind a tree with low-hanging branches. This was the second time she had unknowingly zeroed in on my location. I thought the first time was a fluke, but now that she did it again my heart skipped a beat at the implication. If she could truly feel my presence then the bond between us hadn’t been completely severed yet. I could still fix what I broke. I almost leaped the distance and carried her off. But, no. I would not waste my second chance with her. I would move carefully. I would take my time, if necessary, woo her until she surrendered and gave herself to me.

And I would make sure that when she was back in my arms, she would stay there.

Would she still want you if she knew the truth, my inner voice nagged.

Mira had surprised me at every turn. She just might surprise me again. If it would make her mine, totally and completely, then I would risk revealing my true nature to her and let Fate decide our future.

I left the place only after I was assured that she was safe inside, feeling lighter than I did earlier. The human male was no longer my concern. Mira still had feelings for me. She wouldn’t be easily swayed by his charms. Had she been one of those weaker females, I would’ve been worried. But she had proven her strength when she survived Marcel’s attempts at enticing her. A vampire bent on seduction was nearly impossible to resist. It was how we reeled our victims in. Only those with strong minds and convictions were able to thwart a vampire’s alluring onslaught. If Mira was able to withstand Marcel, a master seducer, she would be able to withstand this human.

I was almost back at the resort Stefan and I were staying in when I caught a whiff of something familiar and unwelcome - vampires. And at least one of them was a Newborn. What were they doing in Cebu? As far as I knew, there had been no reported vampire attacks in this area. Cebu was home to a rare breed of vampires, all under the control of Oleg, a strict but forward-thinking adopted son of the Count. He and his coven only drank animal blood. Oleg called themselves ‘vegetarians’ and anyone who stepped out of the boundaries he had set was dealt with severely.

This was why I wasn’t too desperate to follow Mira here. This city was a known safe haven for humans. Only my restlessness at not seeing her for days had pushed me into getting on the company jet. Yet now, I wasn’t too sure anymore. I took a deep breath and willed my senses to take over, my mind a mere spectator. I was now running on pure instinct.

And my instincts told me these vampires were dangerous. They weren’t from Oleg’s coven. They smelled too much like the mutts I killed the night I rescued Mira because their beating hearts were filled with human blood. I followed their scent to an alley behind a dilapidated building. There were four of them. One sat on the ground, feeding on a barely conscious human male. A second one was sprawled beside a half-naked woman, preparing her body for sex while another was holding onto the Newborn, whispering instructions to it.

I silently cursed, remembering that I didn’t have my blessed blades with me. I had not anticipated any trouble and had left at home. I could still take them down with the short knives in my boots, but it would take a bit of work as they were made of ordinary steel.

Oh, well. It would make for a good workout, I decided as I sprinted toward the unsuspecting quartet. The one holding the Newborn was the first to react. He pushed his ward aside and braced himself for my attack. Too little, too late. One of my knives had already found purchase, slicing through his throat in the blink of an eye. My other blade cleaved through the nape of the one feeding on the human, severing his spine before he could even raise his head. Seeing his companions bleeding and immobile on the ground, the one violating the woman jumped to his feet and charged at me with bared fangs and curled claws. I took off both of his hands as I pirouetted away from his reach and plunged my knife into his Adam’s apple when he tried to scream.

When the Newborn finally recovered from his initial shock, he jumped at me and latched onto the sleeve of my leather jacket. Bad choice, boyo, I almost laughed. It was no ordinary jacket, as he soon found out. A powerful electrical charge surged through his body, causing it to convulse violently. I pulled on his long hair and snatched my arm from his gaping mouth. He collapsed on my feet, shuddering. One swift blow to the back of his neck sent him into oblivion. After making sure that they no longer posed any threat, I walked over to the two humans.

I covered the woman’s body with her torn clothes as best as I could and carried her to the side, propping her up against the wall. Her eyes stared blankly up at me, but she was at least alive. I went back to the man and did the same, setting him up beside the woman. He still had a pulse, but it was faint and erratic. They both needed to be taken to a hospital. Protocol dictated that I notify Oleg since this was his territory, however, since I had special authorization from the Count, I could skip the red tape. But first, their memories needed to be altered. I didn’t have that talent, but Stefan did. Both he and Marcus were skilled at manipulating memories.

Stefan arrived within minutes of my call. He quickly went to work on the humans, altering their memories to suit our narrative. Patching the man up with whatever we had in our emergency kit, we then loaded the two humans into the van. Stefan would drop them off anonymously at the nearest hospital while I cleaned up the mess I created. I was in the process of beheading the rogues when the glint of metal caught my attention. I knelt beside one of the bodies and lifted the hand wearing the ring. My breath hitched when I recognized the markings on it: Servitorii Casei Regale. I lifted his sleeve, looking for the tattoo that would identify his regiment. And there, just inside his right forearm was the crest of the Royal Guards of the Prince. This one belonged to the elite guards of the Prince! What the fuck were they doing here, acting like mutts?

This didn’t bode well. The Prince outranked the Count. And I just killed one of his royal guards. But then, as an Enforcer, it was my duty to destroy anyone who went against the Royal Decrees, including those attacking humans and feeding on them out in the open. Still, this wasn’t the one sucking the young man dry, he was the one holding the Newborn. Letting go of his arm, I went to the other bodies searching for the same markings but saw none. The other two were not Royal Guards. He must’ve recruited these two to assist in whatever he had been planning. I went back to the body of the Royal Guard and searched for anything that could shed some light on his presence here, doing something a member of the Royal Regiment shouldn’t be doing. What I found froze my heart and made my blood boil.

Inside his jacket pocket was a picture of Mira.