Page 64 of Vampire so Virtuous (Boston Vampires #1)

“I’d have to bite you, Cally. I’d have to feed. It’s the only way. You understand now?” He shook his head. “Not happening.”

She chewed her lip. She should’ve expected it. Still, he’d already tasted a trace of her blood, and Belle had distinctly said no vampire short of the Curia would sense her witch heritage.

But she’d been so helpless, unable to so much as move, and Minh had only looked at her. Wouldn’t Antoine have done this if he could? If he’d already done it, wouldn’t he have told her?

Maybe he didn’t know such a thing was possible.

“Do vampires know what other vamps can do?”

He waved a hand. “Some of it. Not all. We don’t share our…”

“Bloodlines?” she finished for him.

He looked surprised. “Yeah. Those.”

“So it’s possible Antoine doesn’t know the resistance thing even exists?”

Gabe winced. “Yes,” he admitted, “it’s possible.”

And if he couldn’t do it for me… he’d hate that. “Then please, Gabe. Please will you?”

“You make it difficult for a vampire to say no.” He didn’t sound happy about it.

“Is that a yes?” She gave him what she hoped was an encouraging smile. “Would it help if I struggled or ran away slowly, saying ‘please don’t bite me, Mr. Vampire’?”

He barked a laugh. “It’s not strictly necessary, but I certainly wouldn’t mind.”

“Then please, Gabe. I need that resistance.”

He shook his head. “Oh, very well. But only because Minh is such an asshole. It’s absolutely the sort of thing that bastard would do—going after the defenseless to torment their loved ones.”

She ignored the ‘loved ones’ comment. “With your resistance, I’d be less defenseless.”

“Yeah. A bit, anyway.” He exhaled sharply. “All right, let’s get it done before I come to my senses.” A ghost of his previous grin returned. “At least I get to bite you.”

Cally swallowed, now confronted with the prospect of what she’d asked for. She took a steadying breath. “My neck, I presume?” She was still wearing her ripped T-shirt. It would be easy access.

“I’m more than tempted to push for your inner thigh,” he said dryly, his earlier flirtation returning. “But no, your wrist will suffice.”

That was a relief. And a surprise—Antoine had refused to feed from there.

“How do you want to—”

But Gabe had already risen, crossing the gap between them. He dropped to his knees before her, taking her hand in his almost reverently. As if wanting to get it done before he changed his mind, he lifted her wrist to his lips.

His bite stung more than Antoine’s, and she drew in her breath with a hiss, bracing for the pleasure that would follow.

Yet it never came.

Instead, a sense of calm descended—a blanket of comfort and safety, like she could let him take as much as he wished, and all would be well.

His throat convulsed as he swallowed, her blood rushing through her arm with the strange, dizzying sensation she’d come to accept. Yet he stopped far sooner than she’d expected, licking across the bite and sitting back on his heels.

Cally blinked as her mind cleared. “That was fast. That’s it?”

“That’s it.”

“Thank you, Gabe.” She didn’t feel any different.

“You’re welcome,” he said wearily, licking his fangs as he pushed himself to his feet, then walked back to his seat with heavy steps.

Cally felt guilty watching him. “Sorry for pushing you into it.”

He slumped onto the sofa and flapped a hand dismissively. “It’s done, it was necessary, and now you’re protected. It was for the best.” He sounded like he was convincing himself.

“You feel different than Antoine when you feed,” she said, trying to lighten the mood.

“Different bloodlines.”

She almost said, Belle was the same as Antoine , but it wasn’t her place to disclose his sire. She recalled his shock when Belle had shared that Roberto was Minh’s.

But that, on the other hand, she had no issue telling Gabe. “Did you know Roberto was Minh’s sire? ”

“Huh,” he grunted. “That explains why he has so many thralls.”

“So, this resistance. What do I need to do?”

“Nothing,” he said. “It’ll work by itself whenever a vampire tries something on you.”

“Will it work against Antoine too?” She should’ve thought of that before. Would it stop her feeling… as she did… when he fed?

“Sure,” Gabe replied, looking at her strangely. “But why would he use his mind powers on you?”

So the feeding effect was different. For some reason, she felt relieved. It would’ve felt like she’d taken something from him.

Cally shifted uncomfortably on her seat. Why did she feel like she’d… cheated on him, somehow?

Maybe it also explained Gabe’s reluctance.

She’d have to tell Antoine as soon as the opportunity arose.

Damn it, couldn’t she ask for Gabe’s help without feeling guilty? It wasn’t like she and Antoine were in a relationship.

Yet that didn’t ring true. Not emotionally, at least.

But if Antoine had been able to give her this resistance, why hadn’t he?

“I’m sorry I pushed you into it,” she said, feeling her guilt swell. “But I’m not sorry I’ll be able to resist Minh.”

“No problem,” Gabe said, weariness obvious in his tone.

Was he just tired, or had she offended him?

“If you go rest, I promise I won’t touch your records.”

He nodded, pushing himself up. “Maybe a couple of hours would help.”

He can’t leave fast enough.

“Gabe?” she said, as he walked past.

“Mmm?”

“Thank you. For everything.”

He gave her a strained smile. “You’re welcome, Cally. It was my pleasure.” Then he grinned more naturally. “You taste delicious, by the way.”

“Such comments could go to a girl’s head.”

*

Left to her own devices, Cally spent a good twenty minutes in Gabe’s enormous walk-in shower, then padded back into the living room wearing only a towel and rummaged through the shopping bags.

Amid the odd cocktail dress, designer blouses, a couple of pairs of ridiculously expensive shoes and an array of revealing lingerie, she found the hoodie, clean jeans and replacement T-shirt—two of each, in the sizes she’d requested, with more in a size up and down, just in case.

It would’ve been funny if she wasn’t still feeling guilty.

She’d tell Antoine when she saw him and explain why. He should know—and she could only hope he’d understand.

It felt like having boyfriend troubles, and they weren’t even dating.

No. Just joined at the hip for the rest of our lives.

Still, there was considerable comfort in knowing that Minh wouldn’t be able to paralyze her again with merely a thought—assuming Gabe was as good as his word, and his resistance worked.

She mooched around his apartment for a bit. Worked out how to open one of the blinds, and stared out over Boston. Played with his weights—she could lift way more than she should. She was undeniably stronger.

She flopped back on the sofa, with nothing to do but look at her phone. It was late afternoon. Eve would be at work… she thought. With all that had happened, she’d lost track of the days. She checked her phone: Saturday. How could that be?

Then she remembered—Minh’s club last night. From there to Antoine’s, to Belle at the Curia’s House, to her apartment. Then the fateful trip to see the doctor that morning, and now sitting in Gabe’s apartment. All in the space of less than twenty-four hours.

It felt like it had been a week.

She should be broken and exhausted. Instead, she was… fine.

The perks of being a marked chattel.

She dialed Eve, but it went to voicemail. She pinged off a text, then slumped back against the sofa.

It was tempting to re-arrange all Gabe’s records for him, but she was still feeling too guilty for what she’d pressed him to do.

Except he’d agreed readily in the end, even commenting how nice she tasted.

Great. That’s my claim to fame: vampires like to feed on me.

Antoine. Gabe. Belle. Far too many vampires in too short a time.

And Minh. As if she could forget him. At least he’d never fed on her. The thought turned her stomach.

Gabe’s voice echoed in her memory. “Minh is such an asshole. It’s absolutely the sort of thing that bastard would do—going after the defenseless just to torment their loved ones.”

Except wasn’t she also Minh’s target now? After this morning’s events?

The icy finger of premonition ran down Cally’s spine .

She dialed Eve again, and once more it went straight to voicemail. Wasn’t that unusual for a Saturday evening?

A knock on the door distracted her, and it opened immediately. A man walked in, dressed in blue jeans and a leather jacket. One of Gabe’s thralls.

For a heartbeat, they stared at each other.

“Where’s the boss?” the man asked.

“Asleep.”

“Shit.” He turned and walked straight back out.

That sounded ominous.

Cally stared at her phone, Eve’s number still highlighted. She pressed the call button again and clenched her jaw as voicemail picked up.

A few minutes later, Gabe walked in, already on the phone. Unlike before, it was actually pressed against his ear. His expression was grim.

“She’s with me now.”

Antoine.

Gabe listened, his eyes on her, the bleakness on his face not fading.

“How many thralls are there?” A pause. “And how many do you have?” Another pause.

“Shit. You want me to send you some of mine?” He listened longer, meeting Cally’s eyes.

“Don’t worry, I’ll keep her safe. Half my thralls are headed your way.

” He ended the call. “I assume you got the gist?”

“Minh?”

“Don’t know. Seems likely. Maybe others too.”

Cally glanced at the blind she’d left open. Outside, dusk had fallen. She felt for the mark, tugging her toward Fisher Hill. “I feel like I should be with him.”

“I think he’d rather you were anywhere but.”

The same thrall as before entered again, and he also had a phone pressed to his ear. “Boss,” he said.

Gabe lifted one finger, still speaking to Cally. “He’d want you safe, not near the fighting.”

“Boss,” the man repeated, more urgently. “We’ve got problems.”

Gabe turned to face him, frowning, then his eyes went distant. “Well, seems Antoine’s not the only one under attack. I’ve got thralls moving in too.”

“Then go.”

He shifted his weight from one foot to the other and said nothing.

“Just go, Gabe. I’ll be fine here. Go do what you need to do.”

“I told Antoine—”

“You told him you’d keep me safe. I’m safe. Hell, I’m so safe, I’m bored. Go stop Minh.”

“Boss,” the thrall said again, listening to his phone.

Gabe winced, half-turning toward him, then looked back at Cally. “Are you sure?”

“Hundred percent.” Ten four. Affirmative.

Gabe hesitated, still reluctant, then nodded. “Fine. Don’t go anywhere.” He was out of the door in a second, the thrall at his heels.

As soon as he’d gone, Cally hit Eve’s number.

Eve answered straight away. “I was about to call you back. Sorry, I was in the bath.”

Thank fuck. “Are you still at home?”

“Yes, why?”

“I need you to leave. Right now. And go—” Where? Where could she go? “—to the dojang.” She needed to warn Joon, too. And explain it all to him. Damn, that wasn’t going to be fun.

“You want me to—Why?”

Cally inhaled sharply. Her first meeting with Minh had been right next to the dojang. “Scratch that. Go to Antoine’s, please. If he’s not there, tell Marcell I sent you.” She should be safe enough at his house, right? Minh wouldn’t dare attack there.

“Shit. Has something happened? Am I in danger?”

God, I hope not. “Let’s call it a precaution. Get your skates on.”

“All right, all right. I’m leaving now. But you better have a damn good explanation for scaring the hell out of me.”

“I hope I’m wrong. I really do.”

“Yeah,” Eve said quietly. “And that, right there, tells me you’re not. Stay safe, babe. See you at Antoine’s.”

“You stay safe too.”

Cally killed the call and stared at the phone in her hand.

How could she have forgotten Minh practically knew where Joon lived and worked? Would she be in time to warn him?

She dialed the number for the dojang, knowing he always kept his phone on silent when teaching. It rang and rang, then dropped to voicemail. “Joon, it’s Cally. Call me back as soon as you get this. As soon as you get this.”

Cally paced through the apartment, knowing Joon wouldn’t even check his messages until classes were over.

She looked to the door. His dojang was half an hour away in an Uber. She could be there and back before Gabe returned, without anyone any the wiser .

But Antoine had asked her to stay put.

Where were Noah and Zoey when she needed them? Probably still recovering from their last run-in with Minh’s thralls.

Cally chewed her lip. If Minh was mobilizing now, surely he’d be distracted? Would Joon even be in his sights?

Could she take the chance he wasn’t?

Damn, damn, damn. How had she not seen this coming?

Had Gabe already left? Would he try to stop her? She headed for the door.

Would his thralls let her leave?

The hallway outside was empty, all the thralls with Gabe. The lift was slow to respond to her summons, likely having just dropped Gabe off in the garage. She didn’t hit the button for the basement, but pressed the lobby instead.

When the lift doors opened, the foyer was quiet. A man sat alone behind the reception desk, not looking up as she walked past. She pushed through the doors and onto the street, checked her phone wasn’t on silent for when Joon called back, then called up an Uber.

Twenty-minute wait. Figures.

Cally headed for the Green Line.