Blood of the Nile (13 page)

Soon after Anwar died,
his daughter arrived in Cairo. At the behest of her cousin Husani, the family
ordered an autopsy on the deceased man’s body. After a slew of tests had been
administered, the toxicology report noted high levels of methanol and ethylene
glycol in Anwar’s bloodstream. Both of these chemicals were active ingredients
in antifreeze and could cause heart failure if ingested in large quantities. Because
of his family’s inquisitiveness, it was only a matter of time before the
killer’s identity would have been revealed. He had no choice but to cover his
tracks.

Maliyah’s murder was
the next logical step. According to his sources, twenty years had passed since the
young girl visited the Egyptian capitol. He hadn’t expected her to show up in
Cairo at all, let alone begin to raise questions about the manner in which
Anwar died. But after two unsuccessful attempts on her life, one via a
befuddled shooting and the second a failed bid to poisoning, he’d grown
frustrated and angry. Not only because of Maliyah either.

Anwar’s business partner,
Ramses
Shakir
, had turned out to be quite the shrewd
adversary. He’d followed his trail from Cairo to Elephantine, the remote island
off the coast of Aswan. Then, the bastard had the audacity to break into his
house. While his bodyguards had been able to get off a shot, he knew the wound
Ramses had suffered wouldn’t be life threatening. Before long, he’d be on his
tail once again.

“Hurry up and
finishing packing,” the man barked an order at Anat. “Our plane departs in two
hours.”

“Where are we
headed?” The maid kept her head lowered submissively.

“Back
to Cairo.
It’s time to put an end to his
nonsense and claim what is rightfully mine.”

***

Maliyah’s stomach
was twisted in knots. She had never felt more terrified in her life. Back in
their hotel room, Ramses lie motionless on the mattress. His clothing was soaked
in blood and he’d been unconscious for close to an hour.

“I need scissors
to cut off his shirt,” Eva barked out the order. On autopilot, Maliyah hurried
toward the bathroom, riffling through her makeup bag until she found the small
pair she kept there. She handed the scissors to Eva, and then walked backwards
until the heels of her feet collided with the wall farthest from the bed. She
closed her eyes and inhaled deeply.

Please let him be okay.

By the time she
opened up her eyes again, the two makeshift surgeons were ready to operate. “He’s
comatose. He shouldn’t feel a thing,” Andreas said as he picked up a three-inch
blade and ran his fingers across its serrated edge.

“Just in case,
let’s pour some whiskey over his wounds before we pry the bullets out.”

Thank God for
Eva’s suggestion. Even though the alcohol should have adequately numbed the
area, Maliyah saw Ramses’ body tense every time Andreas touched the affected
area. With each jab of the knife against skin, the vampire visibly flinched.
Blood oozed out of his wounds, soiling the sheets.

“His blood supply
will need to be replenished,” Eva said. “The few pints we brought with us on
the trip won’t be enough to nurse him back to health. He’ll need to feed.”

The newlyweds both
turned at the same time, staring up to meet Maliyah’s bewildered expression.
Did they expect her to let Ramses drink her blood? Suddenly, her mouth went
dry. It was as if a handful of cotton had been shoved down her throat, making
it nearly impossible to speak. All she could do was shake her head in protest.

Andreas rubbed the
bridge of his nose as if perplexed. “Sorry. You’re a couple. I just assumed
Ramses had fed from you.”

“No.” It was the
only response Maliyah could muster.

“That makes things
a bit more challenging. I guess I’ll have to charm some old lady into making a plasma
donation and keep our boy alive. It’s the least I can do for my father’s
longtime friend.”

In all the chaos,
Maliyah hadn’t noticed that Eva left the room. She couldn’t have been gone for
long. When she returned, she held two see-through pouches filled with a deep
red liquid. Using the scissors Maliyah had given her earlier, she
snipped
off the tip. Then, she pried open Ramses’ lips and
inserted the plastic bag into his mouth. Almost instantly, she saw his mouth
begin to move, suctioning the thick contents like a milkshake through a straw.

Once the second
bag of blood had been emptied, Maliyah could see a noticeable difference in her
lover’s appearance. The sun-kissed olive complexion she was so fond of had returned
to its former glory. His cheekbones filled out too, no longer sallow or sunken
in.

The sun had begun
to rise by the time Ramses had finished feeding. Eva helped her wash his torso,
wiping away all traces of the aforementioned violence. Shaking off the sudden
pang of jealousy brought on by watching another woman’s hands on her man, she quickly
discarded his dirty clothes into a nearby bin. Then Andreas lifted him up and
transferred his body from one mattress to the other. Meanwhile, Maliyah tossed
the blood-soaked linens into the hamper and covered him from neck to toe in
clean, cotton bed sheets.

“He needs rest.
You can expect him to sleep for several hours. By nightfall, he’ll need to feed
again. We’ll send somebody up,
then
he should be good
as new.” Eva said, placing her hand over Maliyah’s trembling fingers. She squeezed
them in a gesture of reassurance. A half-smile framed Maliyah’s face as she
tried her best to keep the scared, insecure little girl inside under wraps.
“You sure you’ll be okay?”

Eva never missed a
beat. She proved very perceptive, surely an invaluable skill for a vampire
huntress. She was smart as a whip and quick on her feet too, both important
qualities needed to hold her own against the likes of the undead. Maliyah only
wished that she could muster an ounce of the confident independence the other
woman possessed.

“We’ll manage.
Though if things take a turn for the worse, I won’t hesitate to come find you,”
Maliyah assured them. With that, Andreas bowed his head and led his pregnant
wife out of the hotel room. They must have sensed that Maliyah needed to be
alone.
To think.
To process the
events of the last few days.

As soon as they’d
gone, Maliyah’s gaze drifted toward the rapidly healing immortal sprawled out
on the bed. She exhaled deeply, hoping to shed the bundle of nervous energy
that had built up inside her. If someone told her a few weeks ago that her life
would be tilted so completely off its axis, Maliyah would have called them
crazy. She’d fallen head over heels for a vampire, and then watched him teeter desperately
on death’s doorstep, gunned down in cold blood by the people responsible for
her father’s murder. It all seemed so unreal.

Maliyah had so
many questions that needed to be answered. Who poisoned her father?
And why?
Would Ramses be able to help her track down the
killer? More importantly, what would happen between them once the mystery of
her father’s death had been solved?

As the
never-ending stream of uncertainties swam through her mind, Maliyah felt her eyelids
grow heavy. It had been an exhausting day and sleep beckoned. Since the one
mattress had been stripped of its linens, she had no other choice but to
squeeze into the bed next to Ramses, crawling under the covers to keep warm.
Before long, she relaxed into the indentation between his chest and his one
good arm. Her head rested against his bicep while her fingers traced the line
of short, wiry hairs that began at his belly and dipped below his waist.

As fatigue settled
in, Maliyah’s last thoughts were of Ramses.
Her lover.
Her protector.
Hell, he’d risked his own life to help
her find closure. Nobody else had ever put himself on the line for her quite
like that. No matter how hard she tried to keep her distance, the man had still
managed to
worm
his way into her heart.

Chapter Fifteen

The Submission

Maliyah pried open
her eyes, struggling to adjust her vision in order to see in the dim lit room.
It was late afternoon. The curtains had been drawn all the way shut, a task Eva
or Andreas must have completed before they retired to their suite. In
hindsight, Maliyah was grateful. Ramses had suffered enough and she didn’t want
him to have to endure any further discomfort as a result of the sun.

Stretching out her
arms and legs, Maliyah tried to relieve some of the tension in her achy limbs.
They had been up well-past dawn working to repair the damage the three bullet
wounds had wrought on Ramses’ body. Because of the dim-lit surroundings,
Maliyah couldn’t see whether or not his injuries had fully healed; she had to
take the other couple’s word for granted when they told her he’d be good almost
as new in the morning.

Next to her, Ramses
lie shirtless. She could feel the solid wall of muscle that pressed against the
material of her silk chemise. Last night, Maliyah had been so
exhausted,
she’d forgotten to change into her pajamas before
falling asleep. She was lucky she’d been able to remove her leather pants.

Ramses’ breathing
was warm. It came out even and well regulated against her bare shoulder. Through
his thin cotton boxers, she sensed him stir. He was aroused, a fact which peaked
her own desire. Regardless of the fears and insecurities she’d felt earlier,
Maliyah wanted him.

Her lover was a
vampire. Big deal! Maliyah needed to let go of the preconceived notions she
held about his kind. So what if he had fangs and claws! Those physical
characteristics didn’t define him. Actions spoke louder than words and the time
had come to accept the feelings she felt for him. After all, the tidal wave of
emotions she experienced every time he drew near wouldn’t simply disappear.

Truth be told,
nothing he could do or say could scare her anymore. He’d proven himself by
risking his life over and over again to keep her safe. Ramses was the same man
who, as a child, had lavished her with gifts and attention. As an adult, he’d
awakened her femininity and made her feel things she’d never dreamed possible.

Maliyah flipped
over on the mattress, coming face to face with her lover. She was able to make
out the outline of his torso and the slight red
tinge
of his eyes. He was awake, but other than that, she had no idea what to expect.
Regardless, her fingers started to move, tangling in the loose strands of hair
that blanketed his pillow. The back of her hand brushed against his cheek, and
the five o’clock shadow that had grown there bristled her sensitive skin. The
sensation sent shivers down Maliyah’s spine.

“Ramses,” she
whispered into the darkness. “I was afraid I’d lost you. I never want to feel
that way again.”

Ramses reached out
to touch her. Suddenly, his eyes became ever brighter, the deep red hue
emanating intense desire and emotional vulnerability. “Are you sure about this,
habibti
?”

“I’ve never been surer
of anything in my life. Make love to me. Please.”

 
Ramses rose up off the mattress, propping his head
on one elbow. Then, he inched slowly toward her face. Before his mouth reached
her lips, he stopped short as if to second-guess his intentions. After a brief
hesitation, their lips finally met. The kiss was soft and languorous.
So utterly sweet.
Maliyah waited for lust to consume them
like it had before, but instead, Ramses showed a great deal of patience and
restraint. Was he worried about hurting her? Or worse yet, that she’d reject
him again?

“
Ramses,
don’t hold back. I want you. All of you,” she told him,
wrapping her arms around his waist so that their half-naked bodies were
inextricably entwined. Still, Maliyah needed more. She rubbed her palms gently up
and down his chest, reveling in the feel of his smooth skin. It seemed his
wounds had fully healed.

Maliyah made quick
work by removing her chemise,
then
cuddled up against
her lover. Skin to skin, she experienced the renewed heat from his kiss, the
force of which caused her flesh to tingle, her womb to convulse. She whimpered
into his mouth, arching her back off the mattress to move even closer.

Ramses’ shaft
rubbed against the entrance to her pussy, teasing Maliyah through the thong she
wore. Soon she became slick with desire. In one fell swoop, Ramses had removed
both of their undergarments and pinned Maliyah to the mattress below him.
Without preamble, the tip of his cock surged ahead, parting her slick folds.
His entire length instantly sheathed itself to the hilt. No unnecessary
foreplay. It was exactly what both of them needed. Ramses pumped inside her at
a rapid, exhilarating pace. At first glance, he appeared to have total control.
However, upon careful scrutiny, Maliyah noticed that his eyes were completely
shut. Wrinkles began to form at the corners of his mouth etching a half-smile,
half-scowl across his face.