Between the Marshal & the Vampire(44)

But even the best man might not be much competition against a vampire whose bite could send a person to heaven and back. For as many lovers as Clay had enjoyed, he couldn't say he could do what Vellum could do to a woman. Not so powerfully. Not in an instant.

It was troubling, and so was the understanding that he looked forward to seeing Vellum again, too. For his own reasons. Reasons that only Mariel would understand. Damn, so maybe tracking down this damn vampire wasn't a fool's errand after all, he thought as he surreptitiously adjusted himself within his trousers. Sometimes giving in to desire wasn't the most reckless thing a man could do.

He urged their horses just a little bit faster.

Over an hour later it happened. He spotted Vellum's horse and the crate up ahead, resting partly within the anemic shadow of a lightning struck pine tree. The trees had begun popping up here and there now that they had left the desert, but so far most had been dead and blackened from storm damage. This particular tree didn't provide much protection from the sun's direct rays. It bothered Clay to see how vulnerable Vellum was like this. Anyone could have ridden up and grown curious about the crate and opened it. Vellum needed them for more than food. He needed their protection.

Clay hoped he and Mariel could convince him of that.

Mariel's horse passed him by in a gallop. Clay smiled a bit but clucked his horse to follow suit. She wasn't the only one looking forward to a reunion with their strange, pale companion.

Once at Vellum's crate, they set about making camp. They wouldn't have much longer to wait until sunset, so Mariel prepared a fire while Clay set off to hunt down food for him and her. It would be ideal if they were fed and rested by the time their vampire awoke and was ready for his meal.

A shudder rippled pleasantly through Clay's body as he rode. Never would he have imagined the day when he possessed not only a beautiful woman, but a male lover who wasn't quite a man.

"Strange world," Clay murmured, and then perked at the familiar, welcome sound of fleeing game.

~~~~~

At the first shift of the crate's lid, Mariel's heart began to pound so fiercely she was sure Vellum would be able to hear it. In fact, the lid, after that initial slide, ceased to move, as if the vampire had detected that he was no longer alone.

"Vellum," she called out so he wouldn't fear the worst, "it's me."

Seconds passed with no sign or sound of movement from within the crate.

Confused, she tried again. "Vellum—"

"I heard you."

A pale hand emerged from within the crate and shoved aside the lid with a violence that made her yelp and take a step backwards as the wood tumbled to the ground.

Vellum rose up like the shadow of a monster, looming over her with supernatural malice and blocking out the moon. Mariel's instincts told her to turn and run, to find Clay, but she forced herself to stand her ground. The old Mariel would have run. But she'd shed that woman long ago.

"It's me," she repeated, though she noted how her voice trembled. "It's Mariel. Clay came with me. We came back for you."

"Why."

It wasn't a question. It was a condemnation of her choice.

She swallowed, her mouth dry. "What do you mean why? Because we weren't happy without you. Because we want to help you. Because—"

"Because you wish to die?"

He stepped out of the crate fluidly, his duster swirling like black fog around his long legs. She didn't remember him being so tall. To look up at him she had to tilt her head back, baring her throat.

"We're not going to die," she told him, breathless with uncertainty and the fear she struggled not to feel. "We're going to help you get to Scar Tooth."

"Where you'll die," he growled softly.

She didn't know what he wanted from her. No, that wasn't true. He wanted her and Clay to turn around and leave him. But that just wasn't happening.

"Why are you afraid of us?" she demanded, going on the offensive even if it resulted in her throat being torn open. This vampire before her resembled little the Vellum with whom she and Clay had shared intimacies. This vampire was the alien creature she had found on the train. But she was convinced this was only one side of Vellum, that the Vellum she knew was in there and wanted to take control.

"The only one who should feel fear is you," he whispered.

His hand shot out before she could duck away, fisting in her hair at the back of her neck. She yelped as he cruelly yanked her head to the side, leaving her completely vulnerable to his attack.

"You came back for one thing," he said against the racing pulse in her neck. "You came back to die."

She shut her eyes. "We came back to love you, Vellum."

"Vampires know nothing of love."

She shuddered as the cold enamel covering his fangs pressed to her skin. Closing her eyes, she said, "You do, Vellum. You know love because you've felt it, too. You still do."

She gasped as twin points of fire pierced her skin.

"Looks like I was right about nightwalkers all along," she heard Clay drawl. "They're nothing but pasty-faced cowards."

Vellum froze against her, the tips of his fangs only barely embedded.

"Should have known as much, considering what you animals did to Janie."

Vellum snarled and thrust Mariel away so roughly that she stumbled. Fortunately, Clay was there to steady her. He held her tight to his side as he confronted the vampire.