“So what are your magic powers?” I asked.
“My heart doesn’t beat. Or rather, it does, but so slowly it’s almost unmeasurable. And I’m ridiculously strong. And faster than a speeding bullet. Oh, and I can control the elements somewhat. There’s some other stuff, but it’s not terribly impressive.”
I frowned. “You left out the blood-drinking part.”
“I don’t do that these days.”
“These days? It’s something you can just give up?”
“It’s overpowering when you’re a young vampire, the urge. But with time, it fades until it’s no more than a craving.” He shrugged. “Besides, it’s forbidden now. Has been for generations.”
“Forbidden,” I repeated.
“The royal court laid down rules. Violate them, and the penalties are harsh.” Another shrug. “Besides, these days there’s no reason to go out and kill. Most just buy blood through our sources when the urge becomes unbearable.”
My eyes widened. “Buy it?”
“Sure. From traffickers who lift it from blood banks, mostly. That way there’s no trace of our existence to frighten the humans we live among. When there are bodies all over the place, it causes problems.”
I felt giddy over the matter-of-fact discussion on blood-drinking and the merits of black-market blood over cold-blooded murder. “Untidy,” I agreed. “There’s probably an app for it, right?”
He smiled. “It wasn’t always that way. Some of the mass murderers in history were undisciplined members of our tribe. Jack the Ripper. The Cleveland Torso Murderer. But as forensics improved, the danger of the truth being discovered was deemed too great, and an absolute ban on fresh kills was imposed. There are only a few rogue vampires who’ve ignored it, but they were mentally unstable prior to becoming vampires.” Jared paused. “One of the rogues is the one who…who ended your life. He fled afterwards and has never been caught.”
“Wait. You’re saying there’s a vampire FBI or something?”
“Not exactly. But there aren’t that many of us, and the various covens know one another and communicate. We all trace our lineage back to the same two makers, so it isn’t surprising.”
I got to my feet. “You said your heart doesn’t beat.”
“That’s not entirely accurate, but close enough.”
A thought occurred to me. “What about the pointy teeth?”
“They only manifest when we’re in bloodlust.”
I nodded. “Take your shirt off.”
Jared looked amused. “Why?”
“I want to feel your heartbeat, since you won’t turn into a bat or anything dramatic.”
“I can simulate a heartbeat if you like, with a few obscure muscles.”
“So you do have one,” I said.
He stripped off his T-shirt, revealing the most incredible torso I’d ever seen. His skin glowed in the moonlight, and as I stepped closer, I was trembling.
“You’re shaking,” he whispered.
“It’s cold,” I countered.
He reached out and took my hand in both of his and then pressed it against his chest. His flesh was cool to the touch, like satin in its perfection. I waited for his heart to beat and, after a few moments, moved my hand slightly to a better position.
And felt…nothing.
I waited expectantly, and after at least twenty seconds, dizziness swept over me and I blacked out.
~ ~ ~
When I came to, Jared had his shirt on and was cradling my head in his lap.
“Wha…what happened?”
“You fainted.” He looked down at me with concern. “Were you holding your breath?”
“I…I don’t remember. Maybe.”
He shook his head. “Don’t do that again.”
I opened my eyes wider. “You…you don’t have a heartbeat. You really don’t.”
“I could be one of those yogis who can slow it to the point where it seems like I don’t.”
I pushed myself to a sitting position and immediately regretted it as the forest spun around me.
“Easy,” he said.
“Are you?” I asked.
“Am I what?”
“A yogi?”
He shook his head. “Afraid not.”
I studied his face, memorizing every nuance. “How do you know that I’m…that I was a vampire?”
“Not just a vampire, Lacey. The light of my world. The love of my life. My eternal beloved.”
“But how did you know?”
“I didn’t. Not at first. I just knew that when I saw you in the crowd, for the first time in forever, I felt…something I thought I’d permanently lost. So I wanted to learn more. I had to. I came up and talked to you after, but…you do look similar to how you did, but also a little different. I was looking for a special mark I’d recognize, but you have all this wild hair…” He shook his head and chuckled.
A special mark? Could he mean my birthmark? I remembered his penetrating glance after the concert and how awkward I’d felt. I’d just assumed that if he saw any kind of mark on me, it would be something bad.
“I couldn’t be sure. It had been so long, and I’d given up hope. But then…for whatever reason, when you got into trouble with that guy, it was like a punch to my gut. I knew you were in trouble as soon as you did. Maybe even before.” He hesitated. “The same thing happened at the river. I lied about practicing my lines. I was in my trailer, and I…I felt you drowning. But that had never happened before except with a few other vampires. And you aren’t a vampire.”
He appeared to think for a beat. “And I felt…I cared about whether you were hurt. Not compassion or empathy. Something more. Something stronger. I’d only ever felt anything like that once in my life before. So I had to investigate.”
“Investigate? Is that what you call our dates?”
“I was trying to figure out what was going on – why I feel such a strong attraction to you. That’s why I was asking you all those questions. I was looking for a clue.”
My heart soared when he said strong attraction.
“It wasn’t until I kissed you that it all fell into place. I knew the second my lips touched your skin. It was like a blinding flash. I just knew. Now, how you could
