Dark Love (13 page)

He would need
to test them.

He pictured the
country side surrounding their cottage in his head. It was not far
from the stone circle, no wonder they had found it. He pictured the
lay of the land and remembered the church.

The
graveyard.

Now that was an
idea.

He would wait
until it was late, until it was dark and they were likely to be
asleep, then he would carry out his plan.

He hoped they
would be weak, that they would fail the test: That they would
either run or perish.

Sarah
slumped back
on the sofa and held out her glass as Daniel
poured her some wine. She took a gulp and sighed.

The excitement
of their arrival had worn off.

Now she could
not shake off a feeling of dread.

She took
another sip of wine, hoping that it would help. It did, a
little.

Daniel sat down
next to her and she rested her head on his shoulder. It was
starting to get dark outside and Daniel had lit a fire in the
hearth. It crackled away and provided a soft warming light.

This would be
an ideal situation if it was not for her lurking memory of those
bodies. That smell. The crow.

Sinking into
negatively was not good. The lower she sank the more it was
impossible not to think of her children. Of hugging them, providing
them with comfort, while making herself feel better. She had to
snap out of it, but how?

Blood.

Her veins felt
dry, and she was beginning to notice her mood was influenced by how
recently she had fed. Blood made her feel jubilant. It enabled her
to push aside her fears and memories. It made her feel strong.

Hunger made her
weak, not just physically but emotionally.

She sat up and
turned her head so she could look into Daniel’s dark eyes.

She uttered one
word.

‘Blood.’

He put down his
glass and stood, pulling her with him, and went straight to the
door.

Sarah let her
hunting instincts take over. She was not afraid to be wild as she
knew it was the only way to make herself feel better. Daniel would
stop anyone getting hurt. He was right by her side, and he would
stay close, protecting her. Protecting anyone that might happen to
venture into her territory.

She sprinted
into the night, her presence covered by the dark, and felt a strong
wind slapping at her skin. If the moon was out the clouds were too
thick to tell.

She appreciated
the darkness and the speed.

She felt
exhilarated.

She stopped and
saw a stretch of woodland - the oaks she had longed to see. If
there were any large prey to hunt that was where she would find
them.

She glanced
over her shoulder, checking that Daniel was still with her, before
speeding down the valley towards it.

As she
approached the woodland she slowed. She did not want to scare away
any animals that were there. She started to stalk inwards. It was
even darker under the canopy of trees with their new leaves that
smelt fresh and vibrant.

She stilled and
listened hard for a heartbeat, a sense of life, of blood.

She heard tiny
beats coming from every direction. The forest was full of life.
There was life in the trees, in crooks and holes and burrows. But
she wanted something larger so she listened harder. Further away
she heard a deeper beating and sped up, shortening the gap so she
could see what it was.

She was so
hungry, so thirsty – she could not wait to feed. As she neared the
pumping heart she could not stop. She saw a small red deer and was
on it in less than a second. It was young and not used to this form
of danger. She sank her teeth through its neck and felt whole again
as its blood flowed down her throat, its power into her cells and
muscles. The blood tasted sweet with youth, and she drained every
drop, feeling the heart slow and then stop. She held the deer
tight, not willing to miss any blood she could get. Finally she
released her teeth and set the deer by a tree, feeling sad about
ending its life. She tossed some leaves over it as a mock
burial.

She glanced up
at Daniel who was leaning casually against a tree. She was just
about to speak when he brought his finger to his lips to tell her
to be quiet.

It was his
turn.

Sarah listened
out, wondering what he had heard, and discovered there was another
young deer nearby.

She watched
Daniel intently. It would be interesting to see how he did
this.

A shiver of
fear ran through her as she saw his face turn feral and his vampire
teeth extend in anticipation of blood. He must be hungry, she
thought, as she had drunk his blood again, and she had not been
lenient about how much she took. Next time she would be.

She followed
Daniel stealthily through the trees and watched as he sprang onto
the deer, taking it completely unaware and sinking in his own
fangs. She could hear him swallowing blood, but just as the deer’s
heart started to slow Daniel stopped feeding. Just like that. He
withdrew his teeth and let the deer go.

The young deer,
its soft red fur only just visible in the dark, looked dazed, but
it did walk off and Sarah could tell it would recover. Daniel would
have to teach her to stop so she could do that too.

‘Nice show,’
she said as Daniel returned to her side.

‘Why thank
you,’ he said, and took her in his arms.

He tightened
his grip and sprang – directly upwards, making Sarah gasp and her
heart pound. They landed on a branch and sat down side by side.
Sarah giggled. God, blood really did make her feel better.

She swung her
leg over Daniel so she was sitting astride him, trusting him to
keep balance, and kissed him passionately. She felt hot as he
returned her kisses and pushed his tongue against hers. She felt
him harden beneath her and she groaned. He contracted his hips,
pushing against her, and she wished she was not wearing jeans. She
jumped up, balancing on the branch, and made a show of whipping
them off while standing on one leg at a time. She leaped back onto
Daniel – catching him off balance – but he steadied them just in
time so they did not fall. He pushed against her again and quickly
undid his buttons, freeing his erection. She kissed him again,
biting at his lip and sucking, sharing blood and breath as she sat
on him and moaned as he thrust, making her feel electricity in her
bones and very soul.

Later she lay
back in bed, satisfied, staring at Daniel with loved up eyes. He
was so God damn sexy. He had fallen asleep first – so much for
tapping into her dreams. She thought back to their lovemaking and
could not help but blush at the thought of the things they had
done, at the way he made her feel, the power he had over her.

She listened to
the wind whistling around the outside of the building, then thought
she heard something else in the distance. A creaking movement, was
that footsteps? – It sounded like feet dragging against the
ground.

She listened,
now alert to danger.

As the wind
blew against her window a draught penetrated the cracks in the
wood, and she smelt the stench of death.

She heard the
noises getting closer and realized there were lots of footsteps,
and she could not hear heartbeats. Whatever was coming was not
human.

Either that or
they were dead.

A rush of
nausea engulfed her and she vomited beside the bed.

Panic came over
her in waves – a terrible sense of foreboding rose up inside
her.

‘Daniel – wake
up, wake up NOW!

THE END

The story concludes
in:

The Two Vampires,
#4

Dark Moors

Out now!!

Dark Wine (The Two
Vampires, #1)

Dark Blood (The Two
Vampires, #2)

Dark Wine & Dark
Blood (The Two Vampires, Books 1 & 2)

Dark Moors (The Two
Vampires, #4)

M.D. BOWDEN
lives in England with her partner and two young children. She
enjoys spending time with her family, in the sea, on the cliffs,
and reading as much fantasy as she can get her hands on.

Twitter:
https://twitter.com/manderbowden81