Tracing Lines of Red

Tracing Lines of Red (chapter 5)

Later that night, Raven confronted me.

"I told you not to drink his blood."

"He accidentally got hurt and I licked it and healed him. That's it. I didn't bite him."

"You were there. I smelled you. When I was drinking his blood."

"Yes, I was there."

He moved to the wall, the one Shadow's knife had gotten stuck in. He sniffed it. "So this is how he 'accidentally got hurt'."

He moved to me. Grabbing my arm, he twisted it, revealing the smooth underside. He brought the knife up. He made slash after slash, over and over. My blood dripped to the floor. It hurt but I made no sound.

"Now heal yourself."

I focused. I tried. I really tried. But I couldn't do it. Tears formed in my eyes as he continued to make new cuts. "Stop, Raven. Please."

"Get what you want with your fangs, Marie. That's the way of the vampires. If not, heal yourself. Right now."

I squeezed my eyes shut. How had I done it earlier? Slowly, excruciatingly slowly, the bleeding stopped and the cuts sewed back together.

"Good job, Marie. This is just training. I didn't want to hurt you."

My eyes flashed a dangerous red as I stared at him. "Get what I want with my fangs?" I said, my fangs throbbing again. "Sure."

I grabbed him by the arm, pulling him down to me. Then I bit him, relentless. I drank my fill.

"Drink, my dear. Well done."

I could taste his feelings in his blood. He was annoyed that I had tasted Shadow's blood. He's protective of all his servants, even me. He was proud that I had learned to heal so quickly. He cared for me.

I stopped, blinking away tears.

He grabbed my arm and bit into my wrist. I felt him looking into me, finding out my feelings.

"You regret me turning you into a vampire. You hate the hunger. You hate that you can't control yourself. You miss your parents. You're lonely. You dislike me. You think I prefer Shadow over you."

I felt my face grow hot as I nodded. He licked the bite and used his own powers to heal me.

"I love all my servants equally, Marie. If you wish, I will drink your blood next time."

"Yeah." I said, embarrassed. "Do what you want."

"Don't worry, it's normal. All my servants feel that way. If it makes a difference, I want you to drink my blood as well."

I moved forward and bit him to hide my chagrin. In all honesty, I liked the taste of his blood. Shadow's was amazing and that tiny bit satisfied my thirst. Raven's is good but needs a lot to satisfy me.

I felt like a little kid who just had a nightmare and wanted to sleep with their parents. I stopped drinking and I used my powers to heal him. I reached out and grabbed his arm.

"Sleep in here." My voice sounded incredibly vulnerable and weak. "I don't want to be alone anymore."

He chuckled in amusement and brought the blanket up to my chin. He sat down on the edge of the bed. His hand reached out and stroked my head. He kept doing that until I fell asleep.

When I woke up the next night, he was gone.