Bree was sitting on a gold gilded settee with black velvet cushions.She wore a white nightgown that had many layers of the thinnest, finest silk.Black embroideries adorned the bands on the wrists and around the neckline.She had her hair loose and it cascaded over her shoulders and down over the edge of the settee.When Zane walked over to where she was sitting, she followed him with her eyes until he was next to her.He knelt beside her and she just gazed at him nervously.Her voice was soft when she spoke. “What are my chances? You know, of surviving?”She knew that this was not Hollywood, there was no guarantee that this whole thing would end good.
Zane rolled his eyes and looked at the wall.When he returned his eyes to her they were worried but intent.“That depends.It all depends on how much of your blood I have to take.”He took her warm hand in his cold ones and rubbed it.“Bree, you do understand what is going to happen, right?”
“Yes.You will nearly drain me and gain back your fiery power.”
Zane laughed at the way Bree spoke such foreboding words with such a light innocence.She looked at him, her eyes calm.He then saw the sadness in them, and a fear that not even her soft and controlled voice could hide.“My fiery power, yes.Oh, Bree, you have no idea.”
“It’s that bad?”
“For anyone on the receiving end of it, I’d say that that would be an understatement.”Bree fell silent.She tried to imagine Zane with such a power, but couldn’t.The way he looked at her now, his gray eyes so concerned, so – afraid?He seemed so human now, so compassionate.
Jasmine appeared next to Zane and put her hand on Bree’s arm. “I have experience in this.When I was human and during the war, I nursed many of my people back to health after them having been attacked by the vampires.”
“But how many died?” Bree’s voice jumped a pitch higher although it remained quiet.
Jasmine looked away.She didn’t want to have to face this question.Many lost their lives even after she had done all she could do to save them. “Some died, of course.But you have to remember, these vampires had intended to kill my people.Zane isn’t going to try to kill you.He has had a thousand years to learn self control when it comes to feeding.He has brought many to the edge of death without killing them.” Bree knew what Jasmine meant although she did not say it.Zane was a pro at keeping his victims on the brink of death only so that he could torture them again when they recovered.Zane saw the hesitation in Bree’s face and looked away.He knew that she knew what they were talking about. “Bree,” Jasmine continued with a soft, reassuring voice, “My son is the most powerful vampire in this realm.And that is partly because of his ability to control that power.I know this whole thing sounds worse than it is.And that is only because of how valuable you are to us.We love you.At the bottom of it all, regardless of the curse, we love you.”
Zane was looking down during this whole exchange between Bree and his mother.He sighed and looked at Jasmine.She rubbed his arm reassuringly.“You must be hot.You should remove your jacket, you don’t need the distraction.”
“Mother, please.After I do this thing, I may have the fire back in me.I haven’t had it for several months, I might have forgotten how to use it without burning myself.”
“Zane, you and I both know that you didn’t use it that often when you had it.Only when you needed to, you didn’t forget then.”Zane had never told his mother how he had wielded his special power on his slaves as well as revolting vampires.He had torched many slaves in his time.He sighed, then removed his jacket to appease his mother, revealing a black t-shirt that he had on underneath.His ashen arms were strong and sinewy.He also slipped off his spiked leather bracelets and threw them to the floor.Bree looked at him and she was visibly frightened now.
“Bree, the time has come.All you have to do is tell me when you are ready.”Zane motioned to his mother to bring the IV bag of saline solution over to where they sat.“My mother has revived many humans without the use of modern day aids.This will help make your chances of coming through this better.” He then looked over at his mother. “Don’t inject it until after I am done.I’m not sure how the salt will affect her blood, hence affect me.” He then put his hand on her small taffeta clad shoulder. “I know you can do this.I believe in you, even though I have had a hard time showing it in the past, and for that I am truly sorry.”
Jasmine nodded and looked at Bree, who was watching them intently. “Whenever you are ready…”
Bree nodded her head and Zane gently put his hand under her neck.Before she closed her eyes, she saw Zane transform from the caring man into the blood thirsty vampire ready to feed.His lips curled back and his glistening fangs emerged, sharp and menacing.His eyes became black as pitch.His face contorted into an expression of malice as he lifted Bree’s head to him.She gasped at the sight of him and paused as Jasmine looked away.His mother had never seen him feed, she had made sure to avoid it at all costs.It was a struggle for her to see her beloved son as the vampire that he was.
“Mother!” Jasmine snapped her head back in the direction of Zane but did not raise her eyes to him. “Get yourself together and get ready!”He lowered his head and pressed his fangs into Bree’s neck.Bree exhaled long and shakily. He then whispered, his cool breath soothing her… “Remember, I love you…” and after he uttered that final whisper, he bit her.
Bree struggled at first, then calmed as the initial and unavoidable pain from the puncture eased away.She closed her eyes as Zane began to drink in her precious blood.Jasmine looked over cautiously and saw only the top of her son’s head as he fed.He found the rhythm of her pulse and began to drink with it, allowing him to get the maximum flow of blood into his own veins as quickly as possible.Jasmine cautioned him to slow down but he ignored her.He ran his fingers through Bree’s hair and stroked her cheek and she arched into him, sighing a blissful sigh. Then her eyes rolled back into her head and closed. Her hand fell limp and her arm dropped over the edge of the settee where it hung there motionless.
Jasmine looked on like a hawk, ready to stop Zane should he not know when Bree’s life would soon slip away into him.But he felt the tugging of her soul leaving her body and immediately pulled back, releasing her throat from his fangs.When he looked at Jasmine she looked back, her eyes wide and wild with anticipation.There was a trickle of blood seeping out of his mouth and down his chin.Bree also bled, the line of crimson running down her neck and into her hair.
“Put the IV in now.” Jasmine was shaking but was able to get the needle in and instantly released the flow of fluid that would drip into Bree’s blood and quicken the speed of her recovery.When she looked into her son’s face, she became afraid.He looked so strong again, and his eyes burned a deep red within the lustrous black. He stood then and snapped his fingers, producing a flame that rose from the palm of his hand.Then, to test the strength of his dark power, he blew into his hand and with a great sweep of his arm, threw a wave of flames into the room.The room burst into light as the fire leapt out and sparked and then eventually faded away.Jasmine ducked although the fire was not directed at her.Bree remained motionless and unaware of the awful gift she had given back to such an already feared vampire, the light illuminated her sleeping face in that one fleeting moment.
“Oh how good it is to have my complete power back.” Zane stood tall and looked very ominous in the room.“Now it is time to use it.”And with that, he grabbed his jacket and jumped out of the window and vanished into the night.
