Vampire in Atlantis

Chapter 18

Daniel woke first, a change in the air pressure alerting him to the coming dusk. He and Serai had slept nearly twelve hours, and each of the times he’d woken to check on her during the day she’d been sleeping deeply, all but unconscious in his arms. He knew the trek was taking its toll on her, but there was no alternative. Her fear of heights wouldn’t allow her to fly. If they didn’t find the gem—Well.

He would not think of that.

She lay curled against him, and her scent of sunshine and sea surrounded him with its delicate flavor. He wanted to taste her again, and his body hardened painfully at the thought of waking her by undressing her and kissing every inch of exposed skin. She sighed in her sleep and put a hand on his face, as if petting him or telling him to wait just a little while, or so he imagined. He grinned ruefully. Even in the face of impending danger and almost certain death, his blood rushed to his cock at the sight of her. In some ways, he really wasn’t much different from that boy she’d known so long ago.

His grin faded as he realized one crucial difference: that boy would not have been fighting the urge to sink his fangs into her oh-so-tempting neck. The blood thirst was worse than he’d ever known it, and he had a strong feeling that it was more about his feelings for Serai than about the blood itself. He didn’t need to feed on blood very often. The blood of the human who had “volunteered” outside the bar would suffice for at least a week more.

No, it wasn’t about need. It was all about desire.

Trying to distract himself, he took her hand in his and realized it was icy cold, so he massaged it, trying to provide heat from friction since his own body temperature ran a little cooler than human or Atlantean. He knew she was shaky from the stasis, in spite of the magic. How she could bear up under the pressure and the demands of this quest after eleven thousand years of inactivity was enough to boggle the mind.

“You’re an extraordinary woman, Serai of Atlantis,” he murmured, and he wasn’t even all that surprised when she opened her eyes and looked into his.

“You’re quite the bee’s knees, yourself,” she said, smiling.

He laughed. “I haven’t heard that one in a long time. And thank you.”

Her brows drew together. “I know. My knowledge of languages is extensive, but my grasp of the correct chronology is rather fluid. I know Rome is long gone, but sometimes I find myself thinking in Latin. The proper speech patterns of England during the Regency period fascinated me, so I might inadvertently drop into those. I find American English a little tiring and flat, if that makes sense, with none of the lyricism of Atlantean, so it’s hard for me to maintain conversation it it.”

“I never would have been able to guess that,” he said, switching to ancient Atlantean. “I think you’re amazing. Your brain must be truly a marvel, to keep up with all of those languages.”

She shifted, making him all too painfully aware that she still lay in his arms, when his pants seemed to shrink a couple of sizes.

“My strength is up, but my limbs feel weak. Almost as if they weren’t connected to my body,” she said, also in Atlantean, strain evident in her pale face. “Walking will be difficult this night.”

“Let me help.” He sat up and pulled her arm into his lap, then began a vigorous massage to get the blood moving and her muscles warmed up. He realized the oddity that he, a vampire, was working to increase Serai’s blood circulation without any intent to partake of that blood, but it was far from the oddest thing he’d encountered in the past few days, so he filed it away under “irrelevancies” and continued, moving on to her other arm for a while.

“May I remove your socks?”

She bit her lip, and in the fading glow of what little light reached them this far back in the cave he saw that her cheeks had turned pink yet again.

“You can’t possibly be shy at the thought of me seeing your feet after I have seen every inch of you,” he said, amused and entranced in equal measure.

“No, but I’m afraid . . . I’m afraid my feet smell bad!”

It took a beat, but then they simultaneously burst into laughter.

“Evil vampires and witches and malfunctioning magical gems, and you’re worried about stinky feet?” He shook his head, still grinning. “You really are a princess.”

“Maybe, but even a princess can worry about stinky feet,” she said haughtily, and he laughed again and then removed her sock before she could protest. He pulled her decidedly non-stinky foot into his lap and began to massage it and her leg.

“You—oh—I—oh. Oh,” she said, almost moaning by the second or third “oh.” “Oh, that feels so good. My poor feet are much abused by my first outing into the world.”

He grinned and applied gentle pressure to her calf. “This is not exactly what I had in mind when I thought of you moaning for me.”

Serai put her hands over her eyes. “I refuse to let you embarrass me after the things we did to each other in that hotel.”

“Then why are your cheeks so becomingly pink?”

Her eyes flew open. “You can’t even see what color my cheeks are, it’s dark.”

“I have excellent night vision,” he informed her, switching to the other leg and beginning the same gentle massage.

“That’s not all you have that’s excellent,” she murmured.

“I heard that.”

“A gentleman would be kissing me now,” she said.

“I’ m not a—Wait. Oh, yeah. I’m definitely a gentleman,” he said, releasing her leg and lying back down next to her.

He pulled her into his arms and kissed her, a long, deep, slow kiss that threatened to blow the top of his skull off by the time he was done.

“Definitely a gentleman, but finding it a little hard to breathe right now,” he said. “Maybe you should take the lead this time.”

Serai didn’t hesitate. She twined her fingers through his silken hair and feathered kisses across those seductive lips of his. She might not have long to live, and she was determined to make the most of every second of it. His scent of woods and musk and man wrapped itself around her and enticed her into kissing his neck and then daring to touch her tongue to the edge of his ear.

He groaned, a long, heartfelt sound, and she jerked back a little, afraid she’d done something wrong, until his arms tightened around her. He pulled her so close that she could feel that intriguing hardness again, pushing up against the juncture of her thighs.

She knew what it meant. He found her desirable. He wanted her. She wanted him, too, oh, by all the gods she wanted him so much, but for some reason she hesitated. Held back. She wanted him. His kisses drove her to the brink of aching, hungry madness, but this was just . . .

“This isn’t what I dreamed about,” she blurted out.

He took a deep breath and blew it out before answering her, but he didn’t move his hands from her back and bottom, holding her in place against him. Part of her wanted to wriggle around and see what happened.

And part of her realized they were lying on a couple of thin blankets on a dirt floor in a cave.

“Dreamed?” He stared at her, and she was pleased to see his eyes were a little unfocused.

“This. Us. Here.” She gestured around them, blushing furiously but determined to explain. “I know it’s a silly romantic fantasy, but I had not dreamed of giving up my maidenhood in such a place.”

He blinked and opened his mouth, then closed it. “I’m a damn fool,” he finally said. “I’m so sorry, Princess. Of course you deserve candles and flowers and silk sheets. I got carried away by the feel of finally holding you in my arms. You’re just so damn beautiful.”

She smiled and kissed his cheek. “I don’t need candles or silk sheets, but a little romance and perhaps a little less dirt would not go unappreciated.”

“You’re amazing,” he said, stroking the side of her face. “Even in the middle of all this danger, your sense of humor is still intact. How could I ever think I might deserve you?”

“My father often informed me I was quite obstinate and annoying,” she told him. “Perhaps I am exactly who you deserve.”

He grinned and rolled up to sit, then stood, pulling her up with him. “I don’t know about that. If—”

But she stopped hearing his words after that. He was still speaking, but a voice on a very old and unused mental pathway in her mind came through loud and clear and drowned out any other sound.

Serai of Atlantis, this is Reisen of Mycenae. I bid you allow me to communicate with you in this manner.

The response to his formal request came to her unconscious mind before her conscious mind could think of it.

Accepted and welcome, Reisen of Mycenae. What news of the world?

We retrieved what we needed from the bank last night. Melody, ah, the human woman Melody has asked me to meet with certain others with her this evening and then I am free to catch up to you and assist you with your quest.

She heard the slight oddness in his voice when he mentioned Melody, but it would have been impolite to inquire as to its cause.

You were successful, then?

We were. Now we only need—Wait. There is someone—

The mental connection between them snapped and then expanded, filled with Reisen’s rage.

They found us. They’re outside. Melody—they shot Melody. I have to go. I’ll contact you as soon as I can.

Serai gasped and Daniel was instantly there, wrapping his arm around her shoulders to steady her.

“Are you okay? What’s happening? You looked like you went into a trance.”

She nodded, distracted, but couldn’t focus on what he was saying.

Reisen, I hope Melody is not badly injured. Be well and safe. Contact me when you can. My best wishes and prayers go with you.

And mine with you, Serai. Tell that vampire that if he hurts you, he’ll answer to me.

The connection broke, and she let it go. Reisen had enough to deal with right now. She sent a fervent prayer to Poseidon that Melody would be healed quickly and that they would be safe, and then she realized that Daniel was shaking her.

“Serai? Serai! Answer me,” he demanded.

“I’m fine. You can stop shaking me now.”

He released her instantly, and then he took a step back and shoved a hand through his hair. “What was that? You were gone. Is that the telepathy thing?”

“Yes. It was Reisen.”

A flash of something crossed Daniel’s eyes, but he simply nodded, waiting.

“The bank job was a success. They got what they needed, but while we were communicating, Reisen said someone attacked them. Melody got shot.”

“Is she okay?”

“I don’t know. He didn’t know. He was on his way to help her and get them away, I think. He said he’d contact us again when he could.” She left out Reisen’s threat, figuring what Daniel didn’t know couldn’t annoy him.

She looked out toward the entrance of the cave, where it was now full dark. “Time to go. I can feel the Emperor, and it’s calling me very strongly.”

“We’re on our own,” Daniel said.

Serai held out her arms to the sky and pulled the strength of the Emperor to her, but this time on her terms. Its power soared through the air toward her, all but thrumming through her bones. “This is our quest to win or lose. Somehow I feel that very strongly.”

He lifted the backpack and slung it over his shoulders again. “Then we really are on our own. Let’s find that gem before the witch starts to play with it again.”

But it was too late. The witch forced her magic through the Emperor again, and Serai screamed, her skull nearly shattering with the force of the pain from another badly manipulated blast of the gem’s power.

When she could breathe again, she gritted her teeth and headed out of the cave. “Now. We need to go find that goddessforsaken witch now.”