“Why are you doing this? What do you hope to accomplish? Why don’t you just kill me outright?” she demanded.
“I have no intention of allowing you to die. Far from it. You will become like me, powerful and insatiable in all our appetites. We will rule together, be invincible. No one will ever be able to stop us.”
“But don’t I have to come to you of my own free will?” she protested hastily. There was no way she was going to accept his life. There could be no way unless he used force. There was no reason powerful enough to make her do as he wished. But even as she thought it, she felt Joshua stir in her arms.
The vampire looked down at her. “Oh, you will, my dear. Eventually you will beg for my attention. I guarantee that you will.” He reached down and hooked her under one arm, dragging her to her feet.
Even as she swayed in the rush of wind and salt spray, Alexandria held on to Joshua with every bit of strength she possessed.
Paul shook his head. “For a human, you are stronger than you should be. Your mind is very resistant to control or persuasion. An interesting problem. But do not try my patience too far, my dear. I can be quite cruel when provoked.”
Alexandria felt a hysterical sob welling up, choking her. If this was showing patience, if this was not an example of his cruelty, she didn’t want to consider what he was capable of doing. “Someone will miss those three women. They’ll find their bodies. They’ll find Henry.”
“Who is Henry?” he asked suspiciously, jealousy contorting his features.
“You should know. You killed him.”
“The silly old man? He got in my way. Besides, I sensed you in the restaurant, defying me, and needed to get your attention. The old man and the boy belonged to you. They served my purpose.”
“Is that why you killed him? Because you knew I cared for him?” Alexandria’s horror was deepening, even as her insides were burning from the tainted blood. She felt as if someone was taking a blowtorch to her internal organs, and her heart ached for dear, sweet Henry.
“I cannot allow remnants of your old life to divide your loyalties. You belong to me. Only me. I will not share you.”
Her heart pounded, and involuntarily she clutched Joshua closer. The vampire was going to kill her brother eventually. He had no intention of keeping the child in their lives. She had to find a way for Joshua to escape. She swayed again and would have fallen, but Yohenstria reached out and caught her arm.
“The light will not reach so far back into the cave that your skin will burn. Come, let us go within before the dawn arrives.”
“I can’t be in the sun?”
“You will burn easily. But you are not wholly changed as of yet.” Ruthlessly, uncaring that she was so weak, he dragged her, still clinging to Josh, inside the bleakness of the cave.
Alexandria fell several times, incoming waves splashing over her clothing. He continued walking, forcing her along, sometimes dragging her behind him. She held Joshua close, trying to impart some of her body heat into his shivering form. He was terribly still, a dead weight in her arms. She tried to think, but her brain was too slow, and she needed desperately to lie down.
A few yards into the cave, the vampire stopped and shoved her against the rock wall, where a thick chain and manacle was bolted. She noticed, as he tightened the cuff around her wrist, that the steel was stained with blood. Evidently he had brought more than one victim to this place to await his pleasure. The metal cut into her soft skin, and she slumped to the ground, uncaring that the water was pouring over her lap and then receding in its endless cycle. She rested her back against the cliff wall and reached to cradle her brother in her arms, all the while shivering, her teeth chattering.
The vampire laughed softly. “I will rest now. I am afraid it will soon become difficult for you to do the same.” He turned his back on her and strode away, his taunting laughter echoing behind him.