Endlessly (14 page)

As I turned off the water I heard a
humming. It was audible even with the noise of the bathroom fan. I
thought nothing of it as I used the dryer on my new jet black hair.
In the mirror I looked like an all-out goth. They use make-up to
look pale, but I was a natural. I turned off the hair
dryer.

As I slipped on a robe, and went out to
the hall, I could still hear the humming. The bedroom door was
open, and I realized it was the Jacuzzi. There I found Ash up to
her neck in bubbles. In one of the mirrors I caught myself peeking
at her like a pervert. She’d leaned her head back and closed her
eyes. She was at peace. Suddenly she sensed me and opened her eyes.
The pull in my chest returned.

“Caught me,” I said,
embarrassed.

She smiled. “It’s about time you come
join me.”

I walked over and sat on the edge of
the tub, staring at my feet. “No, that’s okay,” I muttered, running
my hand through my hair. “I’m glad you like the tub.”

She stood up, and I couldn’t take my
eyes off her. Bubbles slid down her body revealing her beauty. The
tattoo was darker when it was wet. She stepped close, bent down,
and whispered: “I would like it more if you joined me.”

Her scent overwhelmed me. Her lips
found my mouth, and she kissed me feverishly, untying my robe. I
grabbed the belt and retied it. She tried pushing the robe off of
my shoulders but I opened my arms to keep it up. I placed my hands
on the sides of her head to steady her, and slow her.

Why won’t you be with
me?
She jerked away, and sat back down in
the water.

I don’t think that I can be
with you, without turning you
, I told
her.
The bite, the urge…I’ll lose
control.

“I don’t care,” she said aloud. “We’re
going to die either way.”

As a primal growl escaped me I turned
away from her. The growl scared me, and I didn’t want it to alarm
her.

She got up from the water and grabbed a
towel. I closed my eyes, wishing this wasn’t an issue. I heard her
footsteps, and kept my eyes closed. I was afraid of how I might
react to her naked body. As she slid in next to me, and we
embraced, I realized that she’d wrapped herself in a large towel.
Finally I opened my eyes. As I lay my head on her shoulder I could
smell her hair. She put her cold hand on my neck. Her mind was as
blank as her expressionless face. I kept up my mental
wall.

She ran her cool thumb along my jaw
line again and again, as if she were petting me. She traced a line
across my chin and up to my lips.

When her thumb dug into my mouth I
stopped her. “What are you doing?”

Her hand didn’t move. As I tried to
push her away, I realized she was stronger than I was. As her other
hand gripped me behind my neck, I struggled. It was no use. She
forced her thumb down hard on my lower teeth. Strange thick blood
flooded my mouth. It was over. She stepped back and looked at her
thumb. Blood trickled down her hand. She closed her fingers into a
fist.

“There,” she said. “No more arguments.
It’s done.”

“No more arguments? Are you insane! Do
you have any idea what you’ve done?” I roared. I stood, dumbstruck,
and then I felt anger beyond words.

She gazed at me as her
thoughts spilled into my head.
Don’t
bother. I know how mad you are. Now you don’t have to worry about
hurting me.

I took a deep breath, held it, then
suddenly burst out laughing. Vampires had been known to lose their
minds, but I was going to be all right. As I shook my head and
looked at her I felt anger, worry, despair and even
happiness.

I watched blood trickle down her arm,
and let out a sigh of defeat. “At least let me take a look at it
and bandage it.” I held out my hand to her.

When I wiped the blood away there were
no teeth marks, just skin as white as mine. The whiteness was
spreading. As I stared at it I said: “I don’t know what you will
become.”

It didn’t affect you much.
You weren’t human, so it actually helped. You have something more
than a normal vampire. You have an extraordinary vision,
she thought.

“That’s different,” I said. “I was a
born knowing, not an incarnate. Vampires were the strongest of our
kind. You’ve already proved that’s no longer true. You were already
much stronger than I am. You didn’t need this. You don’t understand
the life you’ve chosen.”

“I do understand,” she countered. “I’ve
seen it in your mind. I wasn’t looking for a new lifestyle, I was
looking for you.” She looked down at her bloodied hand. I held it
lightly.

“Vampires lose their souls, Ash. Why
would you do it?”

“Human vampires lose their souls. You
and I weren’t human. I saw in Jessica’s mind the hope she had for
us to move on to another life after death.”

“That’s not a guarantee,” I said. “It
was just Jessica’s theory.”

If this is the only way
that we can be together, than so be it. Either we live together,
forever and immortal, or we meet our fate together, equally. I
don’t want to come back in another life without you.
Tears welled up in her eyes.

I kissed her. She laid her hand on my
chest and ran it down to my stomach. I grabbed her hand.

I smiled at her and shook my head.
“You’re so eager.”

She giggled.

“Let’s get it cleaned up.” I gently
pulled her to the tub.

She sniffed her hand, then licked it. I
laughed at her. “That’s not a requirement.”

“I know, but it’s symbolic. Anyway, I
have to get used to it.”

As she kissed me I tasted her blood on
her tongue. Unlike human blood it was thick and sweet. In that
moment, I almost lost control. I kissed her again and again down
her neck, and my hands wandered under her towel. I caught myself
and stepped back. “I...I...I’m sorry,” I stammered.

She bit her lip and looked at me. “You
don’t have to apologize.”

It scared me how quickly my natural
instincts had kicked in, spinning things out of control. What if I
went too far and wound up killing her.

We washed her hand in the tub, then I
let her dress in private. She emerged from the bedroom in pajamas.
She looked tired. The virus was already spreading.

“I can barely keep my eyes open,” she
said.

“Maybe you should lie down,” I told
her. “It looks like the virus is working pretty quick. You’re going
to want to sleep a lot.”

I helped her into bed. She was weak
already, and fell asleep the moment her head hit the pillow. I let
her be.

I watched TV for awhile, then felt
tired. I lay down, trying not to disturb her, but just as I got
settled, she cuddled up to me.

She kissed me, and pulled at my
clothes. I caught her hand. It was like grabbing a stone. She could
have easily continued but yielded.

It doesn’t matter anymore.
Remember?

She was right. I couldn’t deny her
anymore. I would always let her have what she wanted.

Chapter 14

PITCH BLACK

I woke in darkness and looked at the
clock: four in the morning. I’d slept for a long time. At first I
thought I was burning up, but it wasn’t me, it was Ash. Her aura
was changing with black outlines forming around the red. Her skin
was hot to the touch. Just lying next to her was enough to make me
sweat. Moonlight filtered through the window.

I lay on my side watching her. Her
sleeping face looked peaceful. One of her hands was tucked under
her pillow and the other was entwined in my hair.

I felt her forehead with the back of my
hand. She was burning up. I gently pulled her hair from her face
and noticed a small lump on her forehead a couple of inches above
her temple. I touched it. Her eyes fluttered and she
moaned.

“Sleep my love,” I
whispered.

She pulled her hand out of my hair and
rubbed her forehead. She touched the lump and winced.

“What is that?” she murmured. “It feels
tender, like I hit my head.” She ran her hand to the other side of
her forehead where she found an identical lump. It too caused her
to wince. As I watched her I realized her irises had gone from
brilliant blue to dark purple.

“I can only give you my best guess,” I
said. “I believe you’re going through the change. You’ve got a
fever. I should run you a lukewarm bath. It might cool you down.” I
turned on the bedside lamp. When I pulled back the covers I noticed
a hand-sized patch of skin on her stomach had already turned white.
I pointed to it. “Apparently you will be as white as me.” I kept
myself from looking directly at her. I felt ashamed of biting her
so many times in so many places. These white spots were like a map
of my assaults. They were spreading over her entire
body.

She looked at the spot on her stomach,
then at one on her wrist. “Look,” she said. “It’s making my tattoo
disappear.” A large spot across the inside of her wrist had turned
completely white, erasing what had been there before.

“Wow!” she cried as she rolled onto her
back. She reached back, but couldn’t get to the painful
spot.

I walked around the bed to see what had
disturbed her. Two large bumps the size of eggs protruded
symmetrically from between her shoulder blades and her spine.
Another lump was forming at the end of her spine.

I’d also bit her on the shoulder, and
now the white stretched there. I touched one of the
bumps.

She pulled away. “It’s really tender. I
guess I’m trying to shift.”

I sat on the bed, pulled her chin to me
and kissed her. “Remember,” I breathed, “this has never been done
before. We don’t know what will happen. I just always want you to
know that I love you.”

Her eyes teared with black liquid. “I
love you too,” she said, closing her eyes. I wiped a black tear
from her cheek and showed it to her.

“What is that? My tear?”

“I’ll draw a bath for you,” I said. As
I got up I kissed her, and whispered: “When you look in the mirror
you’ll be surprised.”

In the bathroom I ran the water in the
Jacuzzi, checking the temperature every minute or so. She would
need cool water to get her fever down.

She appeared, hanging onto the
doorframe. I stood up and lifted her. She protested, but then saw
herself in the mirrors. “Is that me?”

“Let me help you,” I said, holding her
as we entered the tub together. As her skin burned against mine I
knew that the lukewarm water must feel like ice to her.

She closed her eyes, curled up and
wrapped her arms around her legs. I bathed both of us. As I leaned
over her to rinse the soap from her hair she opened her eyes. Her
teeth chattered. She pulled me close and kissed me passionately.
She was not shy about it.

I want you now.

“You’re too weak for that. I’ve already
taken too much blood.” My rapid breathing and heartbeat betrayed my
words.

She wrapped her arms around my neck,
and pushed up against me. Her strength had grown. I felt as if I
were trapped in a vise. Her body trembled with fever.

I caught my breath, and said: “In a few
more days you won’t have these limitations, but until then you need
to save your strength. This is only the first day. You’ve got four
more to go.”

“But what if I mutate into something
you can’t bring yourself to physically love?” she asked. “I want to
be with you.”

I pulled away from her, and she
reluctantly let me go. “Ash, I’m begging you. We shouldn’t do this.
You can’t take any more blood loss.”

Finally she smiled at me, and for the
first time I saw her fangs. I laughed. They were like a dog’s
canines, top and bottom. They weren’t very noticeable, being no
bigger than human canine teeth, but they came to sharp
points.

“Look at you,” I said, “turning into a
stereotypical vampire.”

She glanced at a mirror while reading
my mind. “I’ll have to be more careful when I kiss you now, huh?”
she said.

I nodded. “Now you’re stronger than I
am, so you’ll have to be careful not to break me.”

She looked down at her knees. “I’m
sorry. I just really wanted to be with you.”

“I want to be with you too, Ash, but we
have to wait until this change is done. You need to save your
energy. This is the beginning. You’re still weak, and this will
take everything you’ve got. Anything physically taxing is going to
drain you.”

She bowed her head. “Not any more.
Remember I feed off of it. You know the physical…stuff.” She looked
up from under her lashes. “Besides I can’t help myself.”

I chuckled. “Right now you must think
I’m some kind of irresistible stud, but that’s just the change
happening. Your body craves it. You would be able to seduce any man
that you want with a look.”

“But I only want you,” she
said.
Remember…soul mates.

Yes.
Soul mates,
I thought.