Page 9 of Saved by the Vampire Goddess (Dark Wine Vampires #1)

Chapter nine

Valroy

Minnesota Ark Prime—Next night

S hock. Desire. The most sensual kiss of my life.

I long for more, but won’t risk hurting Evelina by keeping her here as the sun rises.

And I can’t follow her—my hands still hold the bucket. Daisy’s nose scrapes the bottom as she tries to lick up every last oat. After she reluctantly surrenders the bucket, I wash it out, then stretch.

The memory of Evelina’s lips on mine haunt me as I go about my chores. I still can’t believe she kissed me. I still can’t believe how much I wanted her lips on mine.

In the early afternoon, I take a nap, and by the time I wake, the Lux vet has come and gone, leaving written instructions for Daisy’s care. I can make out most of the words, even though New Rome uses different spellings. Or is the note a mix of different languages? It doesn’t matter. Since the sun’s still out, Evelina is asleep somewhere in the dome, and I go about feeding Daisy another small serving of watered mash with salt sprinkled on it.

This horse doesn’t hold a grudge. She lets me approach her with the mash, even though I’m the one who stuck my hand into her intestines and shoved a tube down her nose. Hunger probably motivates her, as she loses no time finishing the small meal. Once done, I wash out the bucket and return to the living area to make my dinner.

I’m almost ready to sit down to eat when Evelina appears. “How’s Daisy?”

“I fed her, and I brought in the instructions the vet left.” I point to her place at the kitchen table. “We’ll feed her again in six hours.”

She picks up the paper and scans it while I munch on a bison burger.

“The doc appears to agree with you about the cause,” she finally says.

I warm at her words, but it’s her kiss I’m reliving as my lips tingle. “Do you have to go out scavenging tonight?”

“I figure I can take another night off.”

“You won’t get in trouble with the Lux?” I’ve never asked her this before, more than a little afraid to speak of the angels. But it’s been rare for her to miss scavenging at all, let alone two nights in a row.

“Nah.” She goes into the kitchen and takes out the pan she uses to the heat dark wine, dispensing hot water into it from a spout on the sink. “If I don’t work, I don’t get goods to trade with New Rome for mortal dark wine. That’s enough motivation—though the proceeds from this hitch don’t hurt either.”

“How much time do you have on your current…hitch?”

She drops a bag from the refrigerator into the pan of hot water and swishes it around. “Three years. But don’t worry yourself about the future. We’ll figure out what happens to you when the time comes.”

I won’t be here that long. As much as I want to kiss her the way she did me, my priority is Tina. I’ll find a way back to New Rome to save my sister way before Evelina’s contract ends. But even as I imagine rescuing Tina, I remember Evelina’s lips on mine—a moment we aren’t discussing, it seems—and part of me longs for another path, one where I don’t have this duty to my sister, one where I can care for the horses and convince her to kiss me again.

She returns to the table carrying a mug and squeezes my arm. “Hey, would you like to watch a movie?”

“Yes. The one with you in it.”

She laughs, and her bright blue eyes light up. “You don’t want to see that old thing again.”

“I do.”

After taking a sip, she leaves her mug on the table and struts to the sliding doors. “I’ve got a surprise for you.”

“What’s that?”

“Be right back.” She runs out the doorway and is back in no time with a small container of dried corn. She shakes the jar at me. “Popcorn.”

I squint at the kernels in the jar. “Horse feed?”

“Don’t be silly. This is what I grind to make your corn bread. I’ve been waiting to have some to spare. Come see—a new recipe for you.”

I watch as she pours some vegetable oil in the bottom of a bowl-shaped silicon container, adds two tablespoons of the dried corn kernels, fits a silicon lid tightly on the bowl, and puts the whole thing in the microwave. If she could trade one of those machines to New Rome royalty, she’d have all the blood she wanted for the next three years. But I already know she never will. When I first suggested it, she explained how the Lux funneled whatever microwave ovens were still working to the mixed domes. They take a lot of power to operate, and the isolated domes don’t have the same resources.

A few minutes later, I hear popping sounds. Two more minutes pass, and she takes the container out of the microwave. Fluffy white pieces overflow the container. She dumps it into a large ceramic bowl, adds a dollop of butter, and sprinkles on salt.

“There,” she says, handing it to me. “Try it.”

I crunch on a few pieces. “Wow. This tastes great.”

She hesitates a moment. “Do you like wine?”

I furrow my brow. “Dark wine?”

“No silly. Real wine, from fermented grapes.”

“Bacchus never blessed us with any. We have vodka. That’s it.”

“Then you’re in for a treat. Wine goes good with popcorn.”

So would the beer she gave me yesterday. But now I’m intrigued by something new to taste.

She takes a bottle from the cupboard, twists off the cap, and pours a reddish-purple liquid into a transparent goblet.

I wipe my greasy fingers on a napkin and stare at the clear liquid, which looks like the red wine I’ve seen in movies, and definitely not the opaque dark wine she drinks.

To reward me with such a prize? She must appreciate how I cured Daisy. Pride straightens my shoulders.

“Bring the bowl and join me on the couch.” She sweeps up her mug from the table, carrying my glass, and we sit side by side. She holds out the goblet. “Take a sip.”

I tilt the glass and flavors bloom across my tongue, but I have no words to describe them. Much smoother than vodka. Heavier and richer than the beer.

“My Juno, that’s good. Thank you.”

“A Roman without wine is a crime against history.” She gives me a side smile, then aims the black rectangular wand—the remote, she calls it—at a large painting, and it disappears to reveal a video screen. She presses buttons on the wand. The opening credits start.

I sit back to enjoy the black-and-white movie again. The first time I saw the film, the lack of color surprised me. The forbidden film library in New Rome only goes as far back as the 1970s, and everything is in color.

“You really sure you want to see this again?” she asks.

“I do.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I catch her smiling again.

The story is a murder mystery set in a speakeasy where the male detective and the female suspect fall in love.

Once the opening credits finish, I focus on the left side of the screen. A man and woman sit at a linen-covered table, drinking liquor and watching a band play. The woman is her.

“You’re beautiful.” She really is. I think the same thought every time I see her. I glance from her to the movie and back again. Then my brow furrows, a new thought forming. “How old were you? In this film? You really haven’t aged at all.”

“Aren’t you sweet? I was only twenty-one in the movie,” she whispers, and leans into me.

I set my wineglass and the empty popcorn bowl on the side table, cleaning my fingers on the napkin, then slip my arm around her shoulders like I did last night, pulling her closer.

“And twenty-six when you…” I’m still not sure if I should say when you died , given how alive she seems next to me.

“When my maker turned me, yes. Good memory.”

As the band plays, her character rises and joins the man for a dance on the ballroom floor. Quite a lively dance as he swings her around.

“Why did you want to be an actress?”

She doesn’t immediately answer. Is my question too personal? I wait, bracing for her reaction.

“You know how it is when you’re young?” she asks with a sigh. “You think nothing bad can happen to you? Despite the Great Depression—”

“You’ve used that term before. What’s it mean?”

She side-eyes me.

I shrug. “They don’t teach pre-Collapse history in New Rome, except for Roman history, of course.”

“It was a ten-year gut-churner. Widespread unemployment, banks failed, and the federal government didn’t provide deposit insurance at the time, so people lost their entire savings. Prices fell, but no one had any money to buy stuff, and it became a vicious downward spiral.”

I don’t fully understand everything she’s just said, but it all sounds bad. “Living through that must have been awful.”

“Anyhoozy, I left Minnesota and hitchhiked to Hollywood. I was going to set the town ablaze. I got a few bit parts like this one.”

In the movie, her blonde hair is short and looks almost white. She’s wearing a pale dress, and when the guy on screen swings her around, the dress ripples about her legs.

Sitting next to me, the real her lays a hand on my knee and draws small circles.

My heart speeds up, and blood thickens my cock. I want to make my move, but despite the way her finger circles my knee, I’m not sure where we stand. Was her kiss yesterday just a thank you? She’s shown affection before, but the way we do things in New Rome is so much more direct…

The movie scene cuts, and a man and woman walk on a balcony hand in hand. In the moonlight, the romantic lead, a guy with a deep voice who’s wearing a white tuxedo, pulls her to him and demands, “Look at me, babe.”

Then he’s on her, devouring her mouth.

Futuo. I want to do the same thing to Evelina. I glance over and jump when a loud bell rings.

“Oh fer crying out loud. That’s the vet returning.” She pauses the movie. “We better go see what they have to say.”

She grabs my hand and pulls me to my feet, and we rush out the sliding double doors and down the tunnel leading to the horses’ dome.

A vampire is examining Daisy. From studying Evelina, I’ve learned to spot the slight differences in appearance.

“Valroy, this is Dr. Clarke.”

He’s medium height, thin, with hazel eyes, brown hair, and very pale skin. Acne scars cover his face.

I’d offer to shake the man’s hand, but he’s gloved.

He straightens his spine, tucks his chin in, and widens his eyes. “What is a mortal doing here?”

“Oh hush. The Lux know all about it.” She entwines her fingers in mine. “He’s the one who diagnosed Daisy and rehydrated her.”

“I see.” He sounds snooty, like he doesn’t believe her. “Well, Daisy’s gums look better and her gut sounds fine. You’ve been feeding her watered mash?”

“Yes, sir,” I say. “Three small feedings, with added salt, if you count the one from last night.”

Dr. Clarke nods and taps something onto an electronic pad. “Good. When you reintroduce hay, add some salt to it as well to get her to drink more water.”

I chuckle. The vet just confirmed the same advice I gave Evelina last night. She looks up at me, and I smirk at her.

“Go on with you.” She pushes me away.

I stumble, but regain my footing. “Someone’s a sore loser. I expect to be paid. I won the bet.”

“Fat chance. You probably colluded with old doc, here. Left him a note or something.”

I place my palm over my heart. “I’m an honorable citizen of New Rome. My actions are pure.”

“Shut your pie hole. I know you cheated, and I’ll find out how.”

Dr. Clarke harrumphs at our exchange and packs his gear away. “Daisy should be fine. I want her isolated in a separate corral so the eDocs can monitor her.” He points at one of the little robotic machines rolling around. “I’ll want a record of her bowel movements, feedings, and water intake until she’s eating and passing normally.”

Evelina nods. “We’ll take care of it, doc.”

“Need anything else while I’m here? Does your mortal need any medical attention?”

“Nah, he’s fine. Nothing smells off about him.”

“A vet?” I say, aghast. “I do not need a vet—”

Evelina purses her lips at me. “He’s a doctor for mortals, too. He’s got both degrees.”

“Oh. I’m fine.”

The doctor picks up his bag. “Well, I’ll be off, then. I have other calls to make. Good night.”

He disappears. No warning, no nothing. Just boom . Gone.

I open my mouth, jaw gaping, eyes wide as gladiator shields. “How did he do that?”

“Lux tech. Instantaneous travel.”

I guess that’s a good enough explanation, but I stand there staring at the corral devoid of Dr. Clarke.

“Come on.” She tugs on my arm. “We have a movie to finish watching.”

I glance down at her. “And I have a bet to collect.”

“Just how do you think you’re going to make me pay?”

I slide an arm around her waist as we walk back to the tunnel. “Oh, I have my ways.”