I think he saw this in my expression, making him slump his shoulders slightly, relenting to me. He gave his head a slight tilt, looking at his cousin Blaze who stood near us, loading guns and ammo into his armory. Blaze gave him a nod, having heard the entire conversation.

Rye tensed, taking a deep breath. His lips firmed as he pulled a knife sheath off his forearm, holding his wrist out toward me. I watched him, confused with the gesture. He continued to hold his wrist out to me and beckoned me to take it. I took his hand and looked down at his smooth skin, pale but with the shadows of blood-filled veins running underneath. I could almost see his pulse beating within the layer of skin, like a beacon telling me where to go. I gripped it tighter, trying to sync our heartbeats together as my breath sped up, nervous now that it was happening.

“What do I do? Just bite you? Won’t it hurt you?”

“Shhh,” Rye shushed. He grinned, his fangs flashing me, as though he had extended them a bit. He was excellent a concealing them when he spoke so the gleam of his sharp canines took me by surprise.

He pulled his own wrist to his mouth and bit into it, never flinching or making a sound. I fought the urge to cringe away, not knowing if it was going to be unpleasant or not. My tongue ran over my own teeth, even and straight. Lacking fangs made me feel more human but if drinking blood was to become a necessity, it might be a hindrance. My mouth was dry, parched like a desert as I watched his smooth, crimson blood leak from the puncture holes.

“Here,” he said, offering me his wrist. I took it into both my hands, taking strength from his assurance.

He gave me a nod and held fast. I licked my lips and let my mouth engulf the wounds. The coppery swell of warmth overtook my senses immediately. I let it flow down my throat, its sweet syrupy texture making me feel a sudden rush through my head that surged through my skull and down my spine, all the way to my fingertips. I couldn’t stop drinking, it was as if I had been left dry and this was the only way to quench a thirst I didn’t know was there. It was exquisite, like silken honey. If this was what it felt like for the vampires to drink blood, I now completely understood the craving they lived with every day.

“Alright, April.” Rye’s voice echoed in my head like a distant dream. I didn’t want to let go; I could hear his heart beat in my mind, the sound engulfing my senses like a gong sounding off. Something stirred in me that had never awoken before, something primal and fierce. I would not let go, I would drain him dry until his heart ceased to beat, until the light in his eyes dimmed. It begged me to, this primal thing that I did not fight–it wanted me to keep going and it took my consciousness with it.

I heard yelling and voices but they were so far away and so faint that I barely registered that one of them was Rye’s.

I felt a rolling momentum as the room lurched under me and I found myself staring up at the brilliant bulbs lighting the tunnel. My tunnel vision was gone and Blaze was behind me, clasping my arms tightly and breathing hard. Why was he holding me, locked in his arms? I almost could not breathe. I wiggled in his grip, searching the gathered crowd for Rye. Lifting my head, I spotted him, on his knees and clutching his wrist as if he was in dire pain.

What have I done?

“Let me up, it’s over now.” I muttered. Blaze hesitated but must have felt it was now okay to let me loose. I scrambled to my feet and glanced between Blaze and Miranda, who I now saw had been standing behind Blaze. “What happened? What did I do?” I watched as Miranda helped Rye to his feet, his stance slightly unsteady. My confusion flooded my mind as I stared at them; no one offered an explanation as I waited.

I licked my lips. The remnants of his blood flashed me back to the drink. His paling face, his voice drowned out by the incessant need that had pulsated through my body, a fire engulfing me from within, needing a quenching that only his death would bring. My breath slowed and the horror that I had almost killed Rye for every last drop of his life made me run to him, desperate to remedy my actions.

“Oh my God, Rye, are you alright? Rye?” My arms hovered as I reached out to him. He pulled away swiftly, still clutching his arm. Anger and fear flooded his flashing steel eyes, making my heart sink. He knew. He knew I would have forfeited his life for his blood, it didn’t matter what we felt for each other. It was that powerful a drive, so primal and unrequited.

“But I didn’t know, Rye. How could I have known it would be like that?” I stepped forward again but stopped when he gave me a shake of his head. He turned to leave, almost stumbling to get away, giving Miranda a slight shove to let him walk unaided, leaving me there, arms as empty as my heart.

I had never wanted this. Never this.

Blaze came to my side and put his hand on my shoulder, bringing me away from where Rye had stood. Facing him, I wanted him to tell me what had changed. What would happen now? With Rye’s blood coursing through me, what difference had it made? I hoped it had been worth it. I hoped that the results would be well worth the cost I paid, but I wasn’t sure.

“Blaze?” My voice quivered under the shock of everything.

“Give him a moment, he’ll come around.” Blaze handed me a washcloth to wipe my face. I wondered what I looked like, my chin dripping with blood, standing in a mass of vampires. It was then that I noticed them, the others standing a few arm’s lengths away from me, fear flowing through their blinking eyes. They had watched with interest but now they cowered away in nothing short of terror. I dropped the cloth, finding Blaze waiting for me, serious and contemplative. It was as if he knew what I was thinking. He gave me a tight grin as he started speaking again.

“You’ll be a killing machine. I doubt any one of the others will be able to take you down. You almost got away from me before you came to your senses. I almost couldn’t pull you off of Rye.” He paused as the pain streaked across my face. I cringed at the thought of draining Rye. To think of what I could’ve done made me sick.

“So what now?” I asked warily, knowing the time crept closer to our confrontation with the enemy hive. “Is Rye too weak to help me? Why couldn’t he give me some of the stored blood? Why did he give me his?” My feelings were a miserable mixture of anger, regret and remorse.

“You’ll have more power with vampire blood; Seraphin noted this in the other hive’s research. The leftover stores of human blood we have are for emergencies and as a last resort for food. Miranda is giving him some blood; he’ll be right as rain in no time.” Blaze handed me a small wallet that contained different types of lock picks neatly lined in the plastic. I took it and looked up at him, confused.

“They’ll be chained up–you’ll have to pick the locks. I assume you know how to do that by now, being on your own for so long.” He winked as he turned to walk away, leaving me fingering the cool iron metal of the picks. Sighing, I stuffed them into my jeans where they would not slip out. To see my family chained up was going to be hard enough. I prayed I found them intact. I just wanted to see them again, hear their voices once more.

“We can do this, right?” I asked softly, hoping he heard me over the resumed murmur of voices bouncing around the room.

Blaze nodded, almost imperceptibly. “We can do this.”

Chapter Twenty-Five

The hive spread out into a large circle surrounding the Stratosphere Tower Casino and Hotel. It was a wide perimeter and I was worried we were spread too thin to penetrate the building. Blaze reassured me as we peeked around from behind a pile of cars and garbage strewn across the alleyway behind the parking garage. Behind the casino were apartment buildings that had not weathered the ravages of time very well. Windows were smashed and doors hung on their hinges as they creaked in the slight breeze of the dawn. It was still semi-dark, but everyone could feel the sun pushing on the horizon. It was like a hum in the air, vibrating along our skin.

I could see well already, making me know that the vampire blood inside me was working. It was as if I had night vision goggles on and everything was clear and crisp. It made me wonder what I was now. I wasn’t vampire, I wasn’t human. I had no fangs yet I could see as well as my comrades as we crouched, awaiting our signal from within. Seraphin would be setting off explosives at sunrise to pretty much obliterate the feral vampire population guarding the citadel. I cringed as I thought of the ferals; these would be different than the others, the ones that were now tucked away in the dark crevices of the casinos on the south end of the Strip. These were more aware, stronger. But so was I.

I heard movement behind us and swirled around to come face to face with Rye. He didn’t seem as pale as before but it was hard to tell in the dim light of the dawn. He didn’t seem as exhausted either and his lips shone a darker color than when I had nearly drained him. I was certain they were red and filled anew with blood. He had fed well before he came, regaining his strength. I glanced down to the na**d wrist where I had sucked. Two faint lines of teeth remained, nearly healed from the vicious draining I had administered earlier. I was glad he was healing but I wasn’t sure if he was still angry.

I gave him a weak smile and he replied with a nod of his head as he scanned the area before us. He didn’t return my smile and my heart seized with a searing ache. I longed to see his smile again.

Rye sniffed the air, taking in the early morning desert air filled with the unmistakable odor of feral vampires. “It should be soon. Seraphin has the bombs rigged to a remote control.” I could smell the ferals easily, even if they weren’t very close, in the outdoor air. Usually it was just in their dwellings where their withered bodies stank up the closed rooms. Here, I could smell it like skunk floating on the wind. Wrinkling my nose, I turned away from Rye and waited for the explosions to begin.

I didn’t have to wait long at all.

The sun peeked like a sliver of gold over the eastern mountains, aptly named Sunrise Mountain, and the first pop and rattle of explosions began. The earth shook as it vibrated through the dirt and concrete, sending puffs of debris and particles into the air. I covered my head, afraid one of the thick fragments of cement would find its way to me. Smaller rocks and sprays of concrete littered the ground and rained onto us. I was relieved to have worn my thin jacket, for the shards and pebbles would have cut up my arms on their way down.

When the cascade of debris was done, it was time to run. We ran into the building, pushing the shattered doors to the side, drawing weapons. I pulled my bow out first, and began sending arrows sailing into the darkness wherever I saw movement. I would run out of arrows quickly, but it cleared my path effectively as I made my way into the crumbling mess of the casino floor. Everything in the place was upturned and literally almost impassable. Old dusty slots, stools and card tables were knocked to the ground, blocking the path. I kicked a few stools of my way as I sent arrow after arrow into the oncoming wave of feral vampires.

There were so many of them, pouring out like ants from an underground nest. Holes from the explosions riddled the roof and let the bright rays of sun pour in, setting some of the unfortunate ferals on fire, crumbling them to ash almost immediately. My quiver, now empty, ended up on the floor as I swung my bow to uppercut one feral that had managed to avoid the sunbeams shining down into the place. I hit him so hard with it, the bow snapped. I dropped it to the ground and pulled out both of my machetes. Gripping the hilts, I felt the adrenaline and blood surge within me. I felt invincible.

The blades flashed in the rays of sun as I sent them swinging along with my arms, slashing off heads like nothing. Hacking at their necks when I could, they fell into piles, forcing me to move farther into the chaotic mess. I spotted Rye to my right, his katana flashing. He jabbed and spun like a dancer, taking ferals down with every move. He was graceful and fluid, like he had fought all his life. I wondered if he had. My momentary glance ended faster than I would have liked when two ferals approached me, snarling and snapping their jaws as if they were wild dogs.

The differences were obvious up close. These ferals were much more muscular in build and their eyes were a more brilliant blood red, almost glowing as they took pains to remain in the darkness. They waited, wanting me to enter their realm just a bit more before pouncing on me. Their eyes were not as vicious and empty as those of ferals I had fought before. These were focused on me, with malice swimming across their faces. Their snarls seemed to morph into evil smiles. This made my heart jump, realizing that there was intelligence behind their expressions. I wondered just how much they could think. The other ferals had been so dead and lifeless that to see life behind the eyes of these made me more aware of them, more cautious.

I bent my knees, ready for their advances. They all-too-willingly lunged forward as I stepped out of the light. I swung my machetes in dual arcs, hitting one in the legs and the other across the chest. Their screeches joined the chorus of pain as their comrades died all around us. I hoped none of the screams were from our hive. I prayed that we were on the winning side; it was too hard to tell in the confusing wave of chaos.

One of the ferals was down but one remained in the fight despite his shredded legs. He pulled himself along on his arms, inching closer to me. I finished him with a hack to the neck and rushed forward. The rest of the ferals were beginning to scatter. Glancing around, I found Rye as he motioned me deeper into the building.

“Where are they keeping them?” I whispered. He shook his head and mouthed “Seraphin” before he was sent hurtling into one of the great pillars that held the room up. A hybrid vampire had jumped onto him and pummeling him with his fists. I ran over to hack into him but another got in my way before I could reach him. This one shoved me too, which seemed to be a popular fighting technique here. I caught my footing before crashing to the ground, turning and running to avoid another hit. The hybrid laughed, taking chase after me, but I was just a hair faster. His hand reached out and grabbed my jacket as I flipped the hilt of one machete in my hand to jab backwards into his stomach.