Chapter Three
Lyzander could hear them talking in the corridor.
All he could think about were her eyes.
They had held him captive the way his kind enthralled humans, and when she touched him, he couldn’t pull away. With all his strength and gifts, he couldn’t move. He simply stood there, shaking. He hadn’t realised his body was even capable of doing such a thing. He’d almost crumpled to the ground when something had hit him in the chest. Something he was sure came from her. That human.
He was even more confused about what he had done.
He was always in control. In all the years he’d been alive, he had never lost control like that. He had never been so careless as to let a human see his fangs by accident. But when he saw Michael touching her, he simply reacted.
Hell, he knew he’d lost control as soon as he opened the office door. Even before he had stepped into the corridor, he could smell her. Her scent was unlike anything he had ever come across. Her scent made him endure extreme hunger, and not the hunger one of his kind would have after not feeding for three days. This hunger was so much more intense and overwhelming. There was only one reason why he hadn’t tried to drink from her there and then.
He listened to her talk to Roman. When he heard the woman mention her husband, a strange feeling overcame him. One he didn’t like and couldn’t remember ever feeling before.
He threw back his glass of scotch and poured himself another, not that alcohol had much of an effect on him. He didn’t know for sure what was happening. But from what he knew and what Roman had told the woman, he had a pretty good idea.
An idea he really didn’t like, and certainly didn’t have time for either.
The door opened but Lyzander didn’t turn around.
“Take a seat. Can I get you a drink?”
“Yes please. Laphroaig, if you have it.”
Roman raised an eyebrow at her choice and smiled. He went over to the bar where Lyzander stood, pouring four scotches. He knocked his back and handed one to Roman, just as a knock sounded at the door.
“Come in.”
A large bald bouncer, built like a wall, opened the door halfway and leaned in.
“Hey Roman, you wanted me to bring this guy back here.”
“Yeah, thanks. Show him in.”
The bouncer opened the door fully and stepped out the way.
Sam went to Theodora. “Hey, baby. What’s going on?” He kissed the crown of her head as she wrapped her arms around him. “Are you okay?”
“I am now,”
“Samuel Matthews.” Roman offered his hand.
“Yes, and you are?”
“Roman Montgomery.”
“Mr Montgomery. I didn’t expect to meet you until Monday.”
At this, Lyzander turned around and they both stared at Sam.
“Why would you be meeting with me?”
“I’m here to audit NocLife Leisure. The audit doesn't actually start until next week, but I thought we’d check the place out first.”
“And the plot thickens,” Roman muttered.
“If you didn’t know who I was, then why am I here?” Sam turned to his wife. “What’s going on, Teddy? Why are you in here? And what the hell is that on your neck?” Wide eyed, he reached out to touch her right side.
Theodora moved away subtly, pulling Romans jacket tighter around her.
“Teddy?” Lyzander spat the name out like it was a poison in his mouth. “You’re named after a child's toy?”
Theodora took offense, but it was Sam who answered.
“Teddy is a nickname. It’s what I call her,” he replied defensively.
“My name is Theodora.”
“Ah, Theodora. Much better.” Lyzander pronounced it firmly as he said her name for the first time.
“And who are you?” Sam asked with open hostility, as he took a good look at the pale intimidating figure peering back at him.
“This is Lyzander Pierce,” Theodora explained to him.
“Ly... Ly... Mr Pierce? I’m sorry, I didn’t know. I... Wait, what’s going on here?”
“Please, have a seat, Samuel, and I’ll try to explain what happened.” Roman picked up the two other drinks, handing one to Theodora and offering the other to Sam. “Here, you’re going to need this.”
They took the drinks and sat down on the sofa Roman pointed towards.
“As much as I’d like to break this to you gently, it’s already gone too far for the luxury of sugar coating. Now, where do I begin?” Roman pondered out loud as he stood in front of Lyzander. He looked at him, caught sight of something that made him smile and turned, giving Theodora his full attention as he spoke to the room.
“A few moments ago, Theodora,” Roman suddenly paused, as though he had done something wrong, before hesitantly asking, “May I call you Theodora?” When she nodded, he resumed, “Theodora accidentally learned something about us. I would have said it was something she shouldn’t have learned, but it would seem she was meant to know. As I watched the monitors earlier, looking out for trouble in the club, I saw the most confusing scene. A woman I’d never met before yet somehow I felt like I should know, fell out of the staff bathroom in a private area of the club. I watched as you stumbled into Michael, and he grabbed you by the throat and lifted you.”
“Who did what?” Sam cried out but Roman carried on talking.
“I was about to go deal with the situation but Lyzander beat me to it. Unfortunately, in the process of helping you, he lost his temper and showed you more than he should have.”
“You said us. Does that mean you’re like him? Do you have fangs too?”
“Yes I am, and yes I do.”
“Alright…” Theodora took a deep breath, sounding much calmer than she actually was, which made Roman smile. “Why are you telling me this?”
“Fangs? What the hell are you two talking about?” Sam asked, obviously frustrated and freaked out.
“The queue for the bathroom was long, so I came this way to look for another one. Some guy attacked me on the way out. But he wasn’t just a man, was he?”
“No.”
“What was he? What are you?” She asked Roman, but it was Lyzander who answered, looking only at her.
“He’s a shapeshifter. Roman and I are vampires, and the reason he is telling you this is because you are a keeper. You are my keeper.”
Theodora had no idea what he was talking about. But the way he’d said it and the intensity of his stare made her believe every word he said, and she didn't think it was a good thing at all.
“This isn’t funny. I think it’s time we went.” Sam stated as he stood to leave, holding Teddy’s hand. He looked back down when she didn’t move and saw that she was staring intently at Lyzander.
“I assure you this is not a joke,” Roman informed him.
“Come on, Teddy. Let’s go.” Sam tugged lightly at her arm.
“Theodora is not going anywhere.” Lyzander stated harshly, but he seemed confused as he studied her.
“You can’t stop us from leaving,” Sam alleged, antagonizing the larger man.
“I saw his fangs, Sam, along with a whole bunch of other shit I can’t explain. I think you should sit back down for a minute.” Theodora tugged on his arm.
The movement pulled Lyzander’s eyes away from her and he looked at the man holding her hand. That strange feeling he’d had earlier went through him once more, and he instinctively let his fangs drop down.
“You would be wise to listen to her,” Lyzander rumbled. “I’m in the mood for blood.” He couldn’t hide the half smile that crept up at the sight of Sam turning pale and sitting back down.
“Lyzander!” Roman admonished for the second time that night.
Lyzander retracted his fangs but didn’t stop glaring at Sam.
“I wouldn’t normally say this as it’s disrespectful and not my place, nevertheless, please excuse Lyzander this evening. He isn’t usually like this. However, with his keeper in the room, he’s understandably a little...touchy. So you, don’t go provoking him if you want to keep your arms and legs attached to your body.” Roman pointed at Sam who visibly swallowed.
“You really are va-vampires, aren’t you? Sam stuttered.
“Yes.”
“What do you want from us?”
“We don’t want anything from you.”
“What do you want from me?” Theodora spoke up then.
Roman looked over at Lyzander and the room fell silent.
Lyzander seemed to struggle for a moment before he gave a short sharp nod.
Roman turned back to them. “Vampires, among other supernatural creatures, are very real. We have worked and lived next to humans for a very long time. Despite what you may have read in your storybooks or seen in movies, not everything is true. Yes, we can be made by another vampire and those who were made into one of us were once human. Very special humans who were chosen specifically to be turned, as we can only turn those strong enough to survive the change.”
“What if you make a mistake? What if they are not strong enough to survive? Does the person die?”
“No. They become what we call blood fiends. Dangerous, mindless abominations. It is against our laws to create them, and once we find them, they along with their creator are destroyed. Then, there are those vampires who are born.”
“Vampires can have babies?” She blurted out in surprise.
Roman looked over at Lyzander, who gave a subtle shake of his head.
He didn’t want Roman going into this right now. It would only serve to freak her out even more.
“Yes and no. It’s complicated and something we can discuss another time. Right now, this is what you need to know. Those of us who are born are what we call natural born vampires, and they are born with their soul. But at their first feeding, which for a vampire infant is blood, they lose their soul. When a human is made into a vampire and they take their first taste of human blood, the soul leaves their body, turning them fully from one of God's creation into a creature of darkness.”
“But our souls are not lost. It attaches itself to the soul destined to be our other half. Our redemption. Our mate. It doesn't matter if that person is not yet born. That person’s soul recognizes ours, and so becomes the guardian. The guardian may never meet the vampire whose soul they guard. However, once they do meet, they become bound to each other at first touch and the vampire will slowly regain his humanity. Guardian is an old term we never really use anymore. The name we use now is keeper.”
Theodora inhaled loudly as she absorbed what Roman had just told them.
But just in case she had any doubts, Lyzander hammered it home. “You, Theodora, are my keeper.”
Her face paled at his proclamation. “You must be mistaken.”
“I assure you I am not.”
“This is ridiculous. I’m not a keeper or guardian or whatever the hell it is.”
“Deny it as much you like, but it won't change the fact that it has already started. I feel its presence already. We are now...bound.” Lyzander spat the words out in distaste.
“Woah, back up there. What exactly has started?”
“And what exactly do you mean by bound?” Sam added.
Lyzander looked at Sam as though he were an annoying fly or petulant child. Turning his eyes back on Theodora, he inclined his head towards Roman who took his cue and carried on with the explanation.
“When you touched each other –”
“Why did you touch each other?” Sam asked almost accusingly.
“I was on the floor after that psycho shifter guy attacked me. Lyzander pulled me up.”
“As I was saying, when you two touched, a connection was formed. And that connection will only get stronger. It can never be broken. You are now branded with Lyzander’s mark.” He motioned down the right side of her body.
Theodora didn’t open the coat but she did allowed Sam to turn her head so that he could see part of the mark on her neck.
“It is the matching mark to Lyzander’s. As a keeper, your soul and the one you carry recognised him, linking the two of you together. From this moment on, you can never be parted and you must be joined in several ways if you are to survive.”
“What?” Theodora and Sam exclaimed in unison.
Roman raised a hand to quiet them.
“You are not only the guardian of his soul but his soul mate. One cannot live without the other. In the beginning, it will be much harder. You must be close to each other, often, otherwise you will start to feel unwell. The longer you are apart, the worse you will feel, but only until you are fully bound. In the end, you must be bound. If not, it will result in a very painful and drawn out death. You must also share blood often. You are not entirely human, but you are not a vampire either.”
“Then what the hell am I?”
“Supernatural. To stay healthy, you must have his blood and, to live, he must have yours. You must be intimate with each other.”
“No fucking way,” Sam shouted.
“This is not something I want either. I will be looking into a way around this,” Lyzander stated flatly.
In spite of the crazy situation, his words were like a slap to Theodora.
“Then, there is the ritual –”
“Enough,” Lyzander quietly warned Roman.
“I don’t think so,” Sam interrupted loudly, and the more he talked the louder he got. “You bring us in here with stories of vampires, blood and soul mates, but you only want to tell us half a story and expect us to eat all this crap up. I don’t think –”
Before he could utter another word, Sam was across the room with his back against the wall and Lyzander’s hand wrapped around his neck.
“No. You don’t think, do you? Because if you did, you wouldn’t be shouting at two, very old, and very powerful vampires. Even to an idiot like you, it must be obvious that I don’t like you. I’m also in a very bad mood right now, so I would have no problem draining you dry and throwing your corpse in the bin, even though I’m sure your blood would taste like shit.”
“Lyzander!” Roman admonished once again but Lyzander carried on.
“Let me be clear so there are no misunderstandings, Sam. Theodora may be married to you, but she now belongs to me. And since you seem to belong to her, that makes you both mine. Neither of you will be going anywhere,” Lyzander hissed.
“Put. Him. Down!”
Lyzander’s hand trembled as his head snapped around at the command.
He was stunned that this slight human woman was standing up to him. She looked pissed off and scared, yet strong and beautiful. As it registered in his brain that he thought her beautiful, he knew he was in trouble.
“And what if I don’t?” He asked despite the slight tremble in his hand.
“You just said it yourself. You are both very powerful vampires. If you wanted us dead, you could have killed us before we even knew what was happening. But you haven’t. Roman told me I can trust him, and I believe him. He also said that you would never hurt me. And you’re right. Sam is mine and if you hurt him, that hurts me. And since you obviously need me for something, you won't do shit to him. So I suggest you put him down. Now!”
Smart girl, Lyzander thought, though he felt annoyingly compelled by her words.
“Fine. You may leave now.” He dropped Sam to the ground and stormed out of the office.
He knew losing his temper in front of Theodora was the wrong thing to do, but he just couldn’t think straight.
It was the thirst.
After three days of not wanting blood, he was suddenly ravenous. He blamed the thirst for his uncharacteristic lack of control and for why he’d listened to her instead of tearing Sam’s head off.
◆◆◆
Theodora ran over and knelt down by Sam, embracing him tightly.
“Teddy, you saved my neck there, literally. But what the hell were you thinking. He could have really hurt you.”
She shrugged. “I just saw red.”
“That temper of yours is going to get us killed.”
“My temper got us a reprieve, so let's get out of here before he changes his mind and comes back.”
“He won’t change his mind, Theodora. He’s letting you go because he knows you will come back to him.”
“The hell I will,” Theodora rolled her eyes as they made their way to the door.
“You will know when to find him,” Roman stated seriously, taking hold of the jacket she’d shrugged off and handed back to him. “Just don’t wait too long.”
Roman gave her the same look as he had in the hall, and she knew she needed to heed his words.
“Come on, Teddy, let’s go.” Sam pulled her out of the room.
Roman went back over to the monitors and watched as they made their way back through the club. His mobile vibrated in his pocket and he knew without looking that it was Lyzander.
“Have Josh follow them.” He ordered without preamble. “If another supernatural so much as breathes in her direction, I want Josh to execute them. No exceptions. No one is to interfere with her, and that includes Josh. Only when she is ready is he permitted to reveal himself .”
“Got it. You know, Lyzander, she will be outstanding.”
“No, my friend, she will be trouble.”
◆◆◆
Lyzander prowled through the throngs of heaving bodies on the dance floor, looking for anyone who could quench his thirst, but no one stood out.
It had only been twenty minutes since Theodora and Sam had left but he could already feel his strength waning. Even though he was beyond hungry and the sound of beating hearts drummed out around him louder than the blaring music, he just couldn’t find anyone he wanted to drink from.
Deciding to drink from one of the bags of blood he kept for emergencies instead, he turned to make his way back to the office. Just as he was leaving the dance floor, a soft feminine voice called out to him.
He turned and smiled down at the shapely, hazel eyed redhead before him.
She stood on tiptoes and leaned over to speak into his ear, her long and soft curls brushing against his cheek.
“I saw Roman earlier. He told me I might be of some assistance to you tonight.”
“Ah, Gemma, impeccable timing as always. You have no idea how good it is to see you right now.”
Gemma beamed at his words as he waved her ahead of him towards the back office.
As a donor, Gemma knew who and what Lyzander was. Although she was fully human, she had friends in the supernatural world and often went to mixed events. It was at one of these events that she was introduced to Roman and Lyzander. They’d had a brief fling, which reignited if they saw each other when he came to town, and Gemma had been a casual blood donor to Lyzander ever since.
The office was empty when they entered and as Lyzander made his way over to the leather recliner, Gemma locked the door. She pulled her T-shirt over her head as she slowly made her way over to him and dropped to her knees, pushing his knees apart as she positioned herself between them. Gemma reached around to undo the clasp of her bra but Lyzander surprised her by stopping her.
“Not tonight, Gemma. I only require blood.”
“But –”
“Only blood,” He stated firmly, noting the confused look on her face.
He couldn’t blame her for being confused. Not that it was necessary, but they usually fooled around a little when he fed from her. However, now he felt guilty just from having her in the same room as him.
“Okay, only blood. Where would you like to feed from?” Gemma asked salaciously as she started to undo the buttons on her jeans.
Lyzander’s hand move to rest heavily on hers, stopping her.
“Your wrist will be fine, Gemma, and you can put your t- shirt back on too.” She tried to hide the hurt that flashed across her face, but he saw it. “I appreciate you doing this. I have a lot going on right now so to do any more would be wrong,” He explained, trying to placate her but got the feeling he had made things worse.
She smiled at him before putting her t shirt back on, offering him her wrist.
“It’s fine. Whatever you need from me.”
Her words and actions didn’t match up.
Although she was smiling, he knew she was upset. As he held back curse, he thought, no matter the species he would never understand women.
◆◆◆
“What the hell was that?” Sam asked angrily as they hurried into their hotel room.
Not wanting to freak out the elderly taxi driver, they hadn’t said a word the entire journey back.
“I don't know but that was some messed up shit. Maybe someone slipped us some acid or roofied us. Or maybe the sushi was bad or something. Anything that would explain a shared delusion.”
“That was more than bad sushi.”
“I know that. Don’t you think I know that? My head is spinning here. Some guy claiming to be a vampire, who, by the way and just in case you missed it, is your new boss, says I have his soul inside me and that he owns me. Fucking owns me. Me! Like a pair of shoes he picked out to wear for dinner. I’m freaking out just a bit here, Sam. Just a bit!”
“I know, baby. I’m sorry, come here. I’m not mad at you. I’m just mad at the situation.”
“What are we going to do?” Theodora whispered as he hugged her, pulling her over to sit on the bed.
“Well, right now, we’re going to pack up and get the hell out of here.”
“What about your job?”
“Fuck it. I care about you. Not working for some...thing that nearly killed me.”
“But –”
“No. I’m a big shot auditor, remember? I can find another position somewhere else.”
She smiled and squeezed his hand. “Thank you.”
“No problem.”
“What time is the next train?”
“That’s what I was trying to tell you earlier. I think the first train back to Manchester is at 6am.”
“Fuck! You know what? It’s okay. We can have a couple of hours sleep, grab a taxi to the station and get the hell out of crazy town.” Theodora groaned. “So we have a plan. God, I feel grubby as hell. I need to get out of these clothes. Why don’t you rest up while I take a shower?”
“Sure, if that’s what you want.” Sam flopped back onto the bed and threw his arms over his head.
Theodora made her way into the bathroom, stripped off and stepped into the hottest shower she could endure.
She hadn’t told Sam the truth.
She wasn’t feeling grubby at all. In fact, she had been feeling colder and colder ever since they left the club, and now she couldn’t stop shivering. She was also covering up a pain in her stomach that had been getting worse ever since she had touched Lyzander’s hand.
After ten minutes of nearly burning her skin off, she felt a little better. As she reached out for a towel, she stumbled, hitting her shoulder on the shower door.
“Son of a…”
Theodora straightened up and wrapped the towel around her middle, feeling a tingling all down her right side. She wiped the condensation off the full length bathroom mirror with a hand towel and stared at herself in amazement.
She looked awful. Her face was tired and drained, but it was the tattoo that had her jaw falling to the floor. How she had missed it before she got into the shower only gave testament to how bad she was feeling.
The tattoo started just below her right ear, down her neck, over her shoulder and arm, down the right side of her back and over her breast. It ran down her side over her hip and thigh, stopping just before her knee.
Thick black lines twirled and weaved their way down her body like vines. Smaller, more intricate lines and symbols mirrored the thicker lines. Some of them looked to be a language, but none Theodora had ever seen before.
It was beautiful. A work of art. A terrifying one at that.
Theodora vaguely remembered Roman mentioning a mark but she had never imagined anything like this. This wasn’t a mark but a permanent branding.
Before she had time to freak out more, a wave of pain hit her and she crumpled to the floor. She took a few deep breaths and tried to pull herself back up, but another wave hit her and she cried out.
Sam burst through the bathroom door and stopped in his tracks.
“What the hell. Teddy, what’s wrong?” He asked with wide eyes, crouching down to look at the tattoo.
Another wave of pain caused her to writhe around on the floor.
Sam pulled Theodora into his arms and carried her to the bed. “Tell me what’s going on.”
Theodora took a few deep breaths and the pain seemed to ease. She didn’t answer him right away, choosing to keep the deep breathing going instead. She closed her eyes, concentrating on each breath. After a while, the pain eased even more and was almost gone.
She opened her eyes and looked up into her husband's worried face. “Pain, Sam. A really bad pain. I’ve...I haven’t been feeling so hot since we left the club.”
“And now?”
“A little better,” she whispered.
“What about this?” He gestured to the tattoo.
“I know, and I don’t know. I think I felt it happening though, when he touched me.”
“What do you want to do now? If you’re still in pain, we should go to a hospi–”
“And say what? That a possible vampire bond might be making me feel sick?” She shook her head firmly. “No, I just need to rest. The deep breathing helped so I’ll just keep doing that for a while and get some sleep. I’ll feel better once we’re home.” Sam shook his head and obviously wanted to say more but she added, “It’s what I want, Sam. The pain has almost gone now anyway. I’ll be fine.”
Sam sighed. “Alright, let's get you under the covers before you catch a cold on top of everything else.” He stripped off, climbed into bed and tucked them both in.
Within minutes, they were both sound asleep.
◆◆◆
Sam woke up to Theodora thrashing beside him, groaning in agony.
“Teddy!”
“Get…”
“What? What do you want me to do?”
“Get...me…back.” She rasped out.
“There’s no train for another two hours,” Sam fretted.
Theodora shook her head. “Back to him. Now!” She managed to growl out through clenched teeth.
“Lyzander? You want me to take you back to him? The vampire?” He asked in amazement.
She nodded.
He hesitated only for a second before jumping out of bed, hurrying over to the suitcase to grab clothes.
Theodora cried out in pain. This wave was much stronger than any of the others. It felt like liquid fire was boiling her insides. She curled into a ball on her side with a whimper.
Sam tried to dress her but she wouldn't uncurl, her screams getting louder and louder by the minute. He was sure someone was going to call the police.
Theodora jerked at the sudden wave of pain and she knew she couldn’t take any more. Everything went quiet in her head as she let out a soundless scream. Her vision began to blur. Sam’s face etched in panic came into view, but it was the tall black man standing by the door behind him that caught her eye.
Then, her world went dark.