The Immortal Blood

Chapter 16

 Todd had arrived at the studio in the late afternoon, finding the lawyer alone in his studio with the door open and no living soul in sight.

"Doing overtime?" He had joked, observing him while he examined some documents: he had returned to his work uniform, dark suit and light shirt with tie, but his blond hair fell in rebellious locks on his face, making the ensamble jaunty and rather attractive.
"Let's say so. . . " Adam had closed the file he was holding with a thud. "Did you talk to Vernon?"
"Yes. " Todd sat on the desk next to him. "That's why I immediately ran here. "
"Yeah, I could tell from your tone on the phone that it didn't go well. "
"Me? Let's talk about you, instead. . . " he stared at him with a vague frown.
"What do you mean?" The blonde had gotten defensive in turn, annoyed.
"I mean you took a big risk, Adam. Vernon is not me, you can't go and tell him everything that goes through your head! He's really pissed off, and determined to use you with or without your permission. "
"I didn't mean to be so direct, Todd. I'm not stupid! I tried to. . . but he threatened my wife and daughters, so. . . "
The vampire had remained silent, shaking his head. His gaze had fallen on the photographs of his desk, and he had immediately recognized Adam's girls: both had his light-blue eyes, but only one had inherited his untamed hair and the button tip of his nose.
"How old are they?" He asked, looking at them more closely.
"Kate six, Louisa four. "
"They're pretty. They have your smile. " He looked at him and saw him blush. "Vernon is a bastard, but you shouldn't have let yourself be provoked. . . "
"I know. " The boy had replied, frustrated. "How dangerous exactly is he?"
"A lot. " Todd had a hand on his face. "That's why I'm here: I want to put you in condition to defend yourself against him. "
"How? You said my blood makes you vampires practically immortal. . . "
"It can heal us, yes, but it can't literally save us from Death. There are some things to which we are particularly vulnerable, one of which is silver. "
Silver. Adam remembered reading a similar theory in one of the tomes he'd gone through at home.
"Another is fire. " He had caressed his forearm, where until a few days before a burn scar had marked his skin. It was from when he'd pulled Dimitri and the others out of Vernon's burning villa, letting Alexandra flee into darkness to save his comrades. A bitter smile had distorted his lips: how ironic, if he had let Vernon die, all this would not have happened.
"Cool, so I can spoon Vernon to death while lighting up the fireplace. . . "
Todd had been torn from his memories, returning to gaze at the blond boy with increasing irritation. "It's not a game, Adam!"
"I know, thank you so much. " He'd passed frustrated hands through his hair, messing them up even more. "Todd, I don't know what to think! Who can I trust? You, looking at me like I'm a piece of meat? I don't know what to do!"
"Of course you can trust me! I admit that I took a little advantage of the situation, but if you had really rejected me, I would have backed down."
"What?! So this is MY fault?" Adam had moved the chair away from the desk, his cheeks purple with rage.
"Well, you don't know what to think, and what am I supposed to say?! You let me lie naked on you, jerk off on your body. . . " he had looked at him, and would have banged him even then, indeed: when Adam's rebellious side came out, he became all the more fuckable.
The blond had stared at him furiously, and was truly like him, an explosive character under a surface of apparent calm. "What the fuck are you talking about? You forced me to do this, asshole, I certainly didn't ask you to take me to the countryside. . . "
"No, but you did! Now explain the little story you told Vernon. About US. . . " Todd pointed out, waiting to hear his answer. Adam sent mixed signals that he could not understand, first he resisted him, then he seemed almost willing to suck his cock: he had initially assumed that his desire was a unilateral one, but he was starting to be not so sure anymore. . .
"I. . . I took the fall for you. " Adam replied elusive, turning his face towards the wall.
"Yes, of course you could have been less explicit. Do you realize now Vernon thinks we're actually fucking?"
"What the fuck, you're the one who told him first that we had something!" Adam had cried, standing up to confront him.
"I didn't have to, he got there alone because he knows me!" Todd admitted with difficulty. "I only played along to piss him off, but you. . . shit, Adam, to hell with Vernon, let him think whatever he wants, but you're starting to mess with my brain!"
"I'm married, Todd, I don't care about you. I'm trying to work my way out of a situation that I do not understand, where everyone tells me half truths or lies to me!
"I don't!"
"No? You should have heard Vernon today. . . I didn't want to believe him, but. . . "
"He does it on purpose! He gets in your head, messes with your ideas, and then uses them against you. " Valentine had shaken his head, feeling the need to drink something strong.
"All right, so what can we do against him, anyway?"
"I'm not sure. He's an Ancient, which makes him very powerful. . . he likes to rub his superiority in my face, to remind me that after all I was just a game, for him. I still am..." he said bitterly, staring at his shoes. "I don't want you to end up like me."
"Then let's make sure that doesn't happen." Adam had approached him again, carrying his heady scent with him.
"Yeah, it's easy to say. . . " he took his hand to sniff the underside of his wrist, his teeth caming out on their own, responding to the call of blood. He had looked at the boy, whose expression was indecipherable, but who in any case had not escaped his touch. Once again, he acted in contradiction to himself. . . Todd had emitted a frustrated sigh, slightly sinking the canines, drinking a few drops. His eyes had still searched for Adam, feeling a different kind of urgency: it was not the blood he needed, but a more physical and primordial contact. He stood up, towering over him, pushing him against the wall behind him.
The blonde hadn't opened his mouth, just watched him. Todd had put his hands on the sides of his head, bending over his face, and one more time Adam, while retreating towards the wall, had let him do as he pleased.
"Do you like it?" He blew on his mouth, wondering if he had an erection, too. He had moved one hand to check, but Adam had intercepted him halfway with a firm "No. ".
Todd had burst out laughing, incredulous. "All right, then make me stop. . . " he had crushed his body with his own, with an air of challenge, his hardening dick still in contact with the stomach of the lawyer. Adam stood still like a statue, his face only vaguely distressed. "Do you want me to fuck you?" Todd had whispered him, his hands itching from the need to grasp that dry physique. He had looked him in the eye and had seen, in a completely unexpected way, his pupils dilating. "Fuck. . . !" He let it slip, surprised: he really wanted it!
Adam had then pushed him away and Todd had to work to keep his fury under control.
"Let me go, asshole!" the younger man hit him several times, needlessly.
"All right!" The vampire had freed him, studying him carefully as he recomposed himself.
"You're so gross. . . why do you always have to get handsy, jerk!"
"Oh, stop it! Had II put it up your ass, you'd have probably thanked me!"
"What the fuck are you talking about?! You're out of your mind. Let me through. "
"Out of my mind?!" Like hell, he hadn't surely imagined it! "You're not going anywhere. . . " he growled, turning him violently against the wall, tired of those games. He had literally ripped the pants off him, revealing his thin but firm ass.
"Todd! No!" The boy had raged, trying to escape him, but the vampire had not wavered by an inch.
"What, afraid I'm gonna fuck you for real?" He had laughed, his cock more than ready to fulfill that wish, but he would never impose such a thing on him, especially not now that he was quite sure that Adam wanted it as much as him. "Don't worry, not this time. . . " he had fallen to his knees, his right arm always holding him against the wall. He had placed his face on the muscular buttocks, sinking his nose into them, risking a glance upwards: Adam stared at him from above one shoulder, eyes wide, panting. Todd had resolutely rejected the desire to get up and mount him, instead planting his teeth in a buttcheek, making him shudder with pain. He had held him tight until he felt satisfied with the result, licking the soft curve of skin before releasing him with a groan.
Adam had dressed himself as best he could, moving away from him, his head bent between his shoulders.
Todd had repressed his instinct to jerk off again, even though the other would almost certainly not have stopped him. "Tell me you didn't like it. . . " he'd smirked at him, bringing him closer. He had kissed him on the mouth: Adam had clenched his lips and moved away from him, cleaning himself with the back of his hand, once again a second too late.
"Go away. " He'd dismissed him, furious. "Fucking bastard..."
"Maybe, but at least when I want something, I go and get it. " Valentine went to the door, arms folded. "I'll walk you to your car. "
"Fuck you. "
"You're welcome. . . "
They had walked down the stairs in silence, reaching the parking lot as the sun began to set.
"Remember what I said. "
"I might decide to use it against you, you know?" The blond man had gaped at him from his Subaru's driving seat.
"Yeah, but I'm pretty sure you won't. . . see ya. "
Adam had not responded, starting the engine and heading along the semi-deserted road.
Todd had seen him disappear on the horizon, then walked towards his Porsche, abandoning himself on the dark leather seat. He had opened his pants and relieved himself, but the orgasm, although quick, had been less superlative than usual. It wasn't enough anymore.
With a sigh he left, deciding to avoid going home: he didn't want to meet Vernon, he didn't want to have to deal with him, at least for that night.