Page 30 of The Doctor and the Devil
“You see, Captain, for a vampire to die by wooden stake, he must be stabbed through the heart, a condition which affects turned vampires. Those of us who were born with this affliction never had hearts to begin with. All you’ve really done here is annoy me and ruin a perfectly good shirt,” I said, exploding into my monstrous wolf form. I grabbed the nearest vampire and ripped his body in half, then tossed the pieces across the room. I snagged the other at my left, closed my jaws around his neck and wrenched his head from his shoulders, spitting it at Captain Lucien’s feet. The other vampires fled through the front door, screaming all the way.
I pinned the captain with a steely gaze and shifted back into my human form. My clothes hung in tatters about me, and the black, viscous blood from his dead men dripped from my hands and face. Captain Lucien stared at me for a beat, then reached for the sword at his hip. Before he could draw, however, I forced him back into his chair with the sheer force of my will and compelled him to answer my questions.
“Who was your maker?” I snarled, power thrumming through my words. I wasn’t surprised to feel resistance from him—he struck me as a man with a strong will.
“I don’t know,” he spit through clenched teeth.
Hm. Something between a lie and the truth.I had one more way of finding the information I’d come for, but it was a last resort.
Again, I compelled him, infusing my words with as much power as I could.
“Who was your maker?” I shouted.
His face twisted in rage as his lips formed the words.
“A girl,” he choked out. “That’s all I know.”
A girl.Could he mean Marguerite? There was only one way for me to be certain, and it was something I dreaded. Keeping Lucien immobile with my will, I sank my fangs into his neck and drank.
Drinking from other vampires was taboo for a reason—it was damn near poison and would make one horribly ill. I’d even seen young, newly turned vampires die from it when the bloodlust seized them in a feeding frenzy. As an older, naturally born vampire, it would weaken me temporarily but not enough to stop me. The benefit of taking such a risk was that I would be able to taste for the captain’s bloodline and determine if it was indeed Laszlo who turned him.
Beneath the warm, coppery tang of blood was something vaguely familiar…not my bloodline, but perhaps a degree or two removed…possibly someone Laszlo had turned. It could have been Marguerite.Interesting.I spit the rest of the foul liquid onto the floor and pushed Lucien back down into his chair. Dazed, he clutched at the wound on his neck that oozed thick, black blood.
“Not to worry, Captain,” I said. “I didn’t take enough to end your rather interesting, immortal life. As I said, I rather enjoy the idea of a roving crew of vampire pirates. It feels like something my father would have approved of, and I’m nothing if not sentimental. Now, if you’d be so kind, I’ll relieve you of your great coat. I don’t want to scandalize that fetching tavern maid.”
Trance-like, he shucked his filthy coat and handed it to me with a glazed look in his eyes and a slack expression. I pulled it on and released my hold on him. He shook his head to clear it and regarded me with murder in his odd, pale eyes. I waited a moment to see if he would try for his sword once more, but when he did not, I inclined my head and wrapped the coat tightly around my bloodied, naked body.
“It’s been a pleasure, Captain Lucien,” I muttered to him as I strode out the front door.
Once outside, I walked down the docks to the end of the pier, trying to collect my thoughts and calm my predatory instincts. I inhaled the cold, salty air, heavy with the brine of the ocean and the smoke from nearby fires. The gentle lapping of the water on the timber piles and the soft rush of the waves crashing on the nearby rocks helped to soothe me and temper my anger.
The dark part of me wanted to kill the old captain and his crew for daring to challenge me, but I knew that would likely attract more attention to my presence here than I wanted and wouldn’t serve any grand purpose other than soothing my frustration and tension. If I was being honest with myself, the only way I really wanted to vent those emotions was to chase Mina down, tear her clothes from her lush curves and bury myself inside her, reminding her of all the ways I could bring her pleasure and all the reasons we belonged together. Unfortunately, I’d rushed into telling her everything, and I’d consider myself lucky if I hadn’t lost her for good.
Hell, what a mess.I wasn’t that much closer to finding Laszlo, I’d scared Mina off, and with every move, I sensed the Order getting closer to me. I knew they’d somehow hear of what happened with Captain Lucien—the bastards had ears everywhere—but it was a risk I’d had to take. Moving within the shadows for the last few years hadn’t earned me what I needed, so perhaps it was time for me to start taking some bigger chances.
As you did with Mina?The cruel thought snaked through my mind. I didn’t regret telling her everything, but I berated myself for pushing her and forcing her to accept it before she had time to think on things. I would give her that time. I wouldn’t—couldn’t—risk losing her again. I needed to be patient—the one thing I struggled with when it came to Mina.No matter.I’d waited years to reunite with her and had already had a lifetime of loneliness before that. She was worth the time and my patience. She was worth everything.
And in the meantime, I would find Laszlo. My traitorous brother had a lot to answer for. Pulling the collar of the great coat up to hide some of the blood caked across my face, I ducked my head down and made my way back toward the darkened streets of the port city.
As I wound between the narrow alleys of the less savory part of the area, I heard a scuffle that gave me pause. Outside a tavern, a couple was cloaked in darkness—a young woman’s tearful pleading and the older man’s rough words informed me that the tryst had less to do with pleasure than power. The thought sickened me, and my fangs lengthened reflexively.
Ah, well. I need to feed this evening, anyway.
I approached the couple quietly, scenting fear and panic on the wind. It stirred my hunger and my bloodlust.
“Good evening,” I murmured.
“Fuck off,” the man grunted, not bothering to face me in lieu of caging the woman against a slimy, moss-covered wall.
Suddenly, the frustration, tension, anger, and passion for vengeance collided in me. I seized the man by his collar and whirled him around.
“I’ve never understood the type of man who can so easily torment another human simply for pleasure,” I said. “But I think I will enjoy tormenting you.” Then, to the woman, I said: “Take your leave, Mademoiselle.”
She ran without a second glance.
“Who the fuck do you think you are?” the man growled. “You’ll pay for that.”
His fist flew clumsily, but because of our intimate proximity, it managed to connect with my cheek. The brief flash of pain excited me, and I grinned at him.
