Bite, page 57
It wasn’t really her but an image of Ursela is talking to Sam and it takes me a second to realize what is happening. Her black magic is getting the venom in him to fully react and Sam’s eyes are instantly green as he falls under her spell. And hearing her sultry voice say, “Go kill her for me Sam,” almost makes me scream out in horror. She had convinced Sam that Gina is the enemy and she is sending him to kill her.
I start to run to stop him but Angela slams me down hard to the ground. Joseph tries to help me but she pushes him like he was as light as paper. Damn it’s like she’s the female version of Evan and David combined.
“Sorry Charlie, but you all have to die,” she says sardonically. She shrugs her shoulders while adding, “I hope you understand. Nothing personal.”
I gather my bearings, as I mutter, “Not tonight sweetheart.”
I feel her coming back for me but I use my foot to kick her in the chest and she goes flying a few feet away. David arrives and grabs her just as she is ready to come at me again. With venom heavy in my voice I bark, “You deal with her. I have to get to Sam!”
“No problem,” David says while struggling with Angela.
I quickly run and find Gina fighting with Sam. I get a good look at his face and his eyes are wild with rage as Gina strives with trying not to hurt him. “Sam, it’s me Gina. Please baby, fight this! Don’t let that bitch win,” she pleads.
Behind her, Gina’s friends are crouching over Steve who is bleeding from the neck. I see another vampire sneaking up behind them and I rush over and throw my shield on him. By the time I reach them, the vampire is already a pile of ashes.
“What happened,” I ask while examining Steve’s wound.
Forgetting she’s angry with me Tiffany answers, “I honestly don’t know. We were trying to leave but this redheaded woman was exchanging words with Gina and they weren’t friendly. Then Sam came out of nowhere and he tried to attack Mark but Steve pushed him out of the way and Sam bit him.”
While inspecting the wound, I look in Tiffany’s mind to confirm that everything she said was true. I see the images she spoke of and cringe as I see Sam’s fangs go deep into Steve’s neck. But amazement crosses my face as I watch Gina mentally throw Sam off him and tackle him down to the ground. Everyday she’s getting stronger and I jump out of Tiffany’s head so I can tend to Steve. I look down at him and say, “I can fix this but it’s not going to be pleasant. Keep as still as you can and it won’t hurt as much. Do you understand?”
He is in serious pain but he manages to mutter, “Yeah.”
“Good. Now trust me and you’ll be okay.”
He painfully nods and I lean forward and when my fangs are extended, I bite him. I want to make sure that there wasn’t a lot of venom in him and once I feel his blood is clean (and quite yummy actually) I left up and lick the wounds so they can close up. I look at Steve and calmly say, “You’re going to be fine.”
He slightly smiles as he says, “Thank you.”
Ignoring the stares from the girls, I check on Gina and Sam. His eyes begin to turn back to their golden color and he begins to act like himself again. I mentally ask Gina how did you get him to control himself?
She replies I went into his head and pushed aside a block that Ursela must have put up so I could get him to see who I was and beg him to stop letting the venom control him. That seemed to work.
I kneel down next to him as I ask, “Are you okay brother?”
“Yes,” he responds quietly. “What happened?”
Gina’s anger is apparent as she replies, “Ursela. Her venom overtook you. You attacked Steve and you began fighting with me.”
He immediately springs up and asks, “Did I kill him?”
Steve, who is also on his feet, answers, “No I’m okay Sam.”
Sam winces as he says, “I’m sorry Steve. I would never intentionally hurt you.”
“I know.”
“Well isn’t this sweet.”
I instantaneously recognize the Russian accent and all three of us growl when we turn to face Carla who is standing with the vampire Angela. They both sneer as she says, “Gina, you are turning out to be quite the pain in the ass.”
Gina snickers as she says, “I’m glad that I piss you off so much.”
“No matter. This was just a message from Ursela. She will be here personally to speak to you herself.”
“I’m looking forward to meeting her.”
It happens so fast. Carla hurls a tree branch that Angela was hiding behind her back and it goes right into Sam’s body in the chest. He roars out in pain and Gina unleashes a scream that seems to be only focused on Angela who cries out in pain. Carla has never seen what her screams do to us and she starts to back away. Gina is over at her in an instant and with malice she shrieks, “Here’s a message you can deliver right back to Ursela! And tell her it’ll be a hundred times worse than this for her!”
Gina grabs a piece of wood off the ground and jams it into Carla’s shoulder as she howls out and tries to lash out at her. She uses her mind to make the wood twist in Carla’s wound and she suddenly collapses onto the ground from the pain. Angela hisses but Gina’s glare makes her think twice. Well there’s also the fact that she is mentally holding another piece of wood at Angela’s back. Carla yanks the wood out of the shoulder and tries to stand up so she can attack but Angela says, “Let us go. We didn’t know how strong and powerful she is and we’re not prepared to keep fighting with them.”
“That would be wise Carla. Tell your master I’ll see her soon,” Gina says while smirking.
Angela grabs Carla’s arm and they both run away. Any other vampire that came with them follows suit.
I turn my attention back to my brother and when Evan comes over, I order, “Hold him down!” He grabs Sam’s shoulders and I pull out the stick in which he snarls out in pain. I look at the wound and I sigh as I say, “We got to get him back to the house now.”
“Is he going to be okay,” Gina asks frantically.
“Yes. The stick just missed his heart which would have caused more damage but he needs blood and fast and then he’ll need to sleep so he can heal.”
Joseph comes over and I notice he is shirtless but he’s holding his bloody shirt in his hands. The girls let out a pleasant sigh as David asks, “Decided to go surfing and stopped for a snack instead?”
Joseph smirks as he replies, “Very funny. On my way over here, I noticed a girl was bit and I stopped to help her. I needed something to stop the bleeding.”
I nod in approval but I know that must have been hard for him. I can only imagine what the smell of the blood did to him and the fact that he didn’t give in to temptation is very impressive. But I see the blood did affect him since his eyes are getting black but he says, “Give him to me and I’ll take him back to the house.”
I know he’s the fastest so he will get Sam back home within five minutes. He hands Evan the keys to his bike as he says, “Be careful with my baby.”
“You know I will,” Evan responds and Joseph gently picks up Sam and takes off running.
“What the fuck is going on,” Amber screams at us and I remember Gina’s friends are still standing there. Gina looks at them with distressed eyes as she says, “I can’t get into it right now but if you want to know everything, come to the house and I’ll explain. But Sam is hurt and I have to go. I love you guys and hopefully I’ll see you in a few minutes.”
David and I both stare at her but she runs over to her bike and once she starts it up, Gina takes off.
We start to head for David’s Hummer but Tiffany grabs my arm and asks, “Charlie what’s going on? We’ve seen some crazy shit before but what just happened is unbelievable.”
I would love nothing more but to keep Tiffany in the dark but now it is way beyond that point. I let out a sigh as I reply, “Like Gina said if you want to know then come with us. But right now I need to tend to my brother.”
She softens her tone when she sympathetically asks, “Is he gonna be okay?”
“He should be. I’ll see you in a bit,” I reply while giving her a weak smile.
David has the engine ready and once I hop in, he takes off with Evan in front of us on Joseph’s bike. I know Tiffany and her friends will follow and I can only imagine what their reaction will be after Gina tells them what we are.
We arrive at the house in no time and I rush up to Sam’s room where Joseph has placed him. Gina is by his side holding his hand while thanking Joseph over and over for being careful in bringing him home. Looking at Joseph’s thoughts, he seems a bit too grateful for her gratitude. I’ll address that with him later.
I hear Tiffany’s jeep pulling up the driveway and I say to Evan, “Let them in and you and David keep them in the living room.”
“Okay,” he says and they leave the room.
Harry enters and asks, “What can I do?”
“He needs blood. His wound is not as serious as Vincent’s was so I don’t think a whole human is necessary but he needs it now.”
I hear footsteps running up the stairs and Mark enters. Harry calmly says, “I’ll run out and grab someone.”
“No you can’t. Someone might recognize you,” Gina says urgently.
“Sweetheart what would you have me do then,” Harry asks with tired eyes. “Your husband is hurt. You’re not going to leave his side nor will any of the rest of you. Let me do this.”
Gina shakes her head as she responds, “Pop it’s too risky. Someone will go but you can’t and arguing about this is doing nothing but wasting time.”
“What do you need, blood,” Mark asks and I see where his thought are leading to and I say, “That will work.”
Gina looks at me puzzled while Mark says, “Look I’m already here. Use me. He doesn’t need a lot right so I’ll be okay.”
I add, “He’ll only need about sixty percent max and you’ll recover.”
“Fine let’s go for it,” he says while rolling up his sleeve on his shirt.
Still being stubborn Gina shakes her head, as she screams, “No I won’t let Mark do this. Sam can’t control himself and I don’t want him to accidentally kill Mark!”
Sam suddenly stirs on the bed and he softly asks, “Does he mean that much to you love?”
She kneels back down next to him and replies, “Yes.”
“Then I will not take too much. I promise you I won’t kill him.” He then looks over to Mark with his black eyes and he says, “You have my word.”
Mark nods and then to me he asks, “What do I do?”
“Just make yourself comfortable and when he starts, try not to move. It’ll hurt less if you keep still.” I give him a reassuring smile as I say, “It’ll be over before you know it and everything will be fine.” He makes his way over to the bed and my concern turns on Gina. She’s a newborn so I don’t know how she’ll react once Mark’s scent hits the air. Her control has been amazing but I still don’t want to take any chances. I look at her sincerely as I say to her, “You should leave. Even though he’s your friend, once the scent of his blood hits the room you might not be able to contain yourself.”
“I’m not leaving. I want to be here just in case Sam will need my help,” she responds with determination. Gina walks over to Harry and says, “Pop just hold me tight and don’t let go.”
“I will sweetheart. Don’t breathe in until Sam’s done. That might help,” Harry suggests while grabbing her arms firmly and pulling her farther away from the bed.
Once I see that he has a secure grip of her, I say to Sam, “You ready? If I see you can’t let go, I’ll help you.”
“Thank you,” he replies weakly and I take Mark’s arm. Using my nail I make two small incisions and blood slowly begins to trickle out. Sam doesn’t hesitate as he takes his arm and starts to drink. Trying not to upset Gina, Mark does his best to keep his face neutral but every now and then he winces. I glance at Gina whose fangs are out and trying to move closer but Harry keeps her by his side. I monitor how much Sam takes in and when I see he has enough to help him heal, I simply murmur, “Sam.”
He doesn’t let go and as much as I didn’t want to, I throw a small shield around Mark and the mild shock forces Sam to let go. I grab Mark’s wrist and seal up the wound. Sam lets the pain spread across his face as he quietly whispers, “I’m sorry Mark.”
Mark weakly waves off his apology as he responds, “No problem Sam. I’m fine really.”
Once Harry lets her go, Gina rushes over to my brother’s side and strokes Sam’s hair as she says, “You rest now baby and in a few hours you’ll be good as new.”
“He’ll need to sleep for quite some time but he’ll be fine,” I say while giving my brother a wink.
She smiles as he says, “I feel bad that you have to talk to your friends by yourself. I should be there with you.”
“We’ll be there with her Sam. She won’t be alone while doing this,” I say.
He slightly smiles and Gina whispers, “He needs to rest now.” She murmurs, “Sleep baby. I love you.”
He nods and we file out of the room. I give one more glance around the room and I shut the door.
They Like Me, They
Really Like Me
(Gina)
I hate to leave Sam but he needs to sleep and let Mark’s blood heal his body. I now have to concentrate on the more difficult task before me. I have to tell my friends, including my BFF, that I am a vampire.
Charlie goes downstairs while the rest of us remain at the top of the stairs. I look at Joseph whose eyes are blacker than I’ve ever seen them and I ask, “Are you okay Joseph? Do you want to stay up here until they leave?”
Harry eyes him suspiciously as Joseph answers, “No I’ll be okay. I can handle it.”
I smile and I turn to Harry and say, “You stay here Pop and keep an eye on Mark. Sam took a lot of his blood and I don’t want him passing out on us. Besides I’ll need to prepare them before you make your appearance.”
He nods in agreement while Mark sheepishly grins while responding, “Gina I’m fine. A little dizzy but fine.”
“Which is exactly why I want Harry to stay close to you,” I say with a smirk. After giving him a wink, I extend my hand out for Joseph and he hesitantly takes it and we finally make our way downstairs.
When we reach the living room, I see my friends sitting on the couch with all kind of emotions on their faces. When they hear me enter (I made sure to stomp when I came down the stairs), Tiffany jumps up off the couch and asks, “Gina, how’s Sam?”
I’m shocked by her concern since I’m expecting her to chew my head off for tonight’s events. I give off a shy smile before replying, “He’s okay. He’s resting now but he’ll be good as new when he wakes up.”
“Gina, he had a branch stabbed into his chest. Shouldn’t he go to the hospital,” Amber asks slowly while staring at me questionably.
Now this is more of the reaction I’m ready for. I know the questions will start coming and I have to be careful on how I answer them so I won’t scare them too much. I’m prepared to tell them all the truth but I’m not prepared if they decide after hearing it that they no longer want to be friends with me anymore. I did not want to lose them.
I look at Amber as I reply, “The doctor won’t be able to help him. Taking him to a hospital would raise a lot of questions.”
They look at me with bewilderment as Diane asks, “What kind of questions? What happened was not your fault and we can tell them that.”
I pause while I stare at them intensely before I respond, “No Diane that’s not what I meant. If we take him to a hospital, they will notice that he has no pulse and his skin is ice cold. None of his organs function and if they stand too close to him, they might not survive.”
I let my words hang in the air for a moment and in that time Mark comes downstairs with the help of Harry. The girls can’t believe what they are seeing as Amber blurts out, “Shut up!”
While leaning over to Diane, Steve asks, “Who is that with Mark?”
She whispers back to him, “That is Gina’s supposedly dead father.”
I glance over to Harry and ask, “Couldn’t wait a few more minutes huh?”
“Sorry. Mark needs to sit down and he wanted to be here,” he replies with a light grin.
Harry helps him sit in one of the armchairs and I walk over to where Mark is sitting and ask, “How are you feeling?”
He gives me a feeble smile as he whispers, “A bit weak but okay.”
“Gina,” Tiffany starts in a firm tone, “how the hell is your father standing here? He’s supposed to be dead. I mean seriously what the fuck is going on here?”
Mark gives me a wary glance as he says, “I guess you better bite the bullet Gina. Get it; bite the bullet,” he says while chuckling.
I slightly smile but then I take a deep breath as I stand back up. I’m ready to speak when I feel Joseph’s apprehension and I grab his hand as I ask, “Which one?”
Without turning to look at me he simply replies, “Her,” and I realize that he is looking directly at Diane with his cold black eyes. I turn in her direction and say firmly, “Diane, while I talk, I’ll need you to remain seated. Your blood is exciting Joseph a little more than I like.”
She takes in my words as she stammers, “M-my blood?”
“What else do vampires want,” Steve asks. We all look at him in shock and he shrugs his shoulders as he calmly says, “After two men bite you, you kind of have to put two and two together.”
“Steve that’s ridiculous. They are not vampires. Vampires don’t exist,” Tiffany says with confidence. “I think you’re getting too caught up in all the vampire propaganda.”
