“No.”
“Look, up until sixweeks ago, Vampires were just folklore t’me, and then I wasattacked, Elle. They kept me tied up.” I lifted my bound hands upto the side of my face, being careful to not knock her sword. Hergaze moved to the shackles and then back to my face. “Theyforce-fed me, experimented on me. They had a file on me. I’ve leftit by the wall round the corner. I don’t understand most of it, butif you read it, you can see what they’ve done.”
“Do you really thinkI’m that stupid?”
“No, you’re smart, andyou’re the only person who will understand what all the jargon inthat file means.”
“I turn my back on youand you attack me or run off.”
“I’d never attack you,Elle. As for running off, I’ve spent days trying t’get here, t’you.I’ve got nowhere t’go, Elle. You’re the only one I can trust.” Myshoulders sagged. “They injected me with something, Elle, andthey-they fucking castrated me. Please—”
“Vampires don’t doshite like that.”
“They do. I sweart’God they do. Just look at the file. Please, you’re the only one Iknow who knows about this stuff, and the only reason I haven’tthrown myself off a cliff is because I spent every second thinkingabout you.”
She blinked.Uncertainty swirled in her eyes. A strange look crossed herfeatures.
“TMI, Than.”Teen Elle coughed.
“I mean, knowing thatyou would believe what had happened to me—”
“You thought wrong.”Her fingers flexed on the hilt of the sword. “The only thing Ibelieve is what I see with my own eyes. You’re a Vampire, and Ikill Vampires.”
“Jesus Christ, Elle,it’s me. I didn’t ask for this, and I have no fucking idea why theychose me.” My eyes felt clogged once more, the hint of somethingslithering down my cheeks. “I don’t know what t’do, Elle. Please,for old times’ sake, if not for our childhood for my Mamai. I cannever see her again, Elle. Not like this. Please just read the fileand tell me what it means, and I will go and leave you in peace. Ijust want t’know what is going on. Why all of this has happened.”My voice cracked. “What I’m supposed t’do. Please?”
Silence stretched outbefore me. Our eyes locked, hers not giving anything away.Suddenly, she straightened, standing with the sword still in myface. “Crawl and get the folder.”
She took a couplesteps back, the light of her torch following my every movement as Itwisted on to my knees and crawled through the grass alongside thecrumbled building until I got to the corner where I had stoppedearlier. Reaching round, I felt for the manila folder, taking holdof it. I fell back on my knees and held it out to her.
“Open it.”
I did as sheasked.
Squatting back down,sword now pointed at my midsection, she scanned the first page ofmy file, her eyes widening slightly when they landed on the autopsyphoto. “This has t’be a-a hoax.”
“It isn’t ahoax.”
“None of this makessense. This isn’t how Vampires are created.” She looked between meand the folder, her brow furrowed. “Is this a joke, Than?Are you playing a game?”
“What?”
Her eyes seemed tohold a million questions. “People have been worried about youand—”
I shot up, quickerthan intended. She fell back, butt hitting the grass, swordslipping from her grasp. I grabbed her wrist.
“This isn’t a fuckingjoke.” I pulled at her arm, flattening her hand against my chest.“I have no fucking heartbeat.”
The tension faded fromher arm. She relaxed her fingers and pressed her palm firmlyagainst my chest. Her eyes met mine, a hint of moisture hiding intheir corners.
“This is not afucking hoax, Elle,” I said slowly. “They killed me.” Icould feel the tears seeping from my eyes, and the mixture ofhorror and pity that claimed her features only made it worse. “Andturned me in to this.”
A moment passed. Herbig, beautiful green eyes searched my face over and over as if shewere searching for some vital clue.
“Let me go.” The wordswere practically whispered when she finally replied.
I let go of her wrist.She pushed herself to her feet before leaning down and collectingher sword from the ground. The tip appeared in my face once more.“Y’try and bite me and I will kill you, old friends or not.Are we clear on that?”
Relief crashed down onme as I stared at her. “Crystal.”
She glanced at hermobile. “The sun is due up in half an hour. I need t’get yousomewhere safe.”
I just wanted to sinkat her feet and cry some more.
“Jesus, you needt’man up.”
I slid a scowl to teenElle who was draped over a nearby headstone. “Thank you, Elle.Thank you—”
Real Elle held up herhand and cut me off. She nodded at the file on the ground. “Bringthat and explain as we go. Start from the night you were attacked,and don’t spare any details.”
Chapter Four
~ Danielle ~
9.08am
I dropped the file onthe bed beside me. My head also wanted to drop that way into myhands … I had brought a Vampire home with me, and not to torture.I’d clearly lost the fucking plot.
No not a Vampire.Nathan.
He’s still a Vampire.You still brought a Vampire home with you.
Fuck.
I’d brought Nathanhome. Well, he was still resting in the storage space under thebackseats of my Range Rover parked on the drive, and he would bestaying there until sundown. There was enough physical proof thathe was a Leech—crying blood, ice-cold to touch, and theno-longer-having-a-heartbeat was a no-brainer. But the file he hadgiven me, his file, backed up what I could see with my own twoeyes, backed up everything he had told me.
He hadn’t been turnedinto a Vampire in the traditional manner, which made no sense.Surely, it was easy to bite a human, let them drink your blood? Whyhad they done it differently with him? Why go to all the extratrouble?
When a Vampire bit ahuman, the venom got into the blood stream. If the Vampires werefeeding, they easily sucked it back out, but if it was for thepurposes of turning—or they were new-born and had no idea what theywere doing—then the venom triggered the first stage of themutation. If a Vampire didn’t baptize an Infected with their blood,then the Infected would run wild, but if they did, then thevictim’s
