Ch. 2: Vampire Blood

There were injuries all over Cole, most likely from the demon attacks. Isabella knew why he was distracted… he was going to say that he was thinking about her. Isabella reached for her dagger, Kagehishu, and tried to slice the bonds Victoria had tied to her but it didn’t loosen. “Cole! Cole! Get up!” she yelled. He struggled to move, but didn’t make much progress. “I… can’t Isabella,” he whispered. Isabella threw Kagehishu away and started to try and bite the strings off. She gave up. She pulled the strings as far away as they would go and resisted the temptation to bite. “Tori!” Isabella screamed. Her voice echoed over the water of the lake fifty feet away. No reply came from the bleak darkness.1

After a while, Isabella knew she had to help Cole somehow. Isabella crawled over to Cole, still resisting her blood lust, and pulled him closer to the dead tree. There was a deep gash across his chest, a cut across his neck, and blood was falling from his hairline. Isabella healed what she could but the gash in his chest couldn’t be helped by her healing skills. “What do I do Cole? What do I do?” Isabella cried, tears streaming down her face. The rain picked up into a pouring torrent of water. Her tears splashed down onto Cole’s face with the water.2

Isabella pulled her jacket from under the tree and put it over Cole’s chest. The rain soaked Isabella through her clothes and she shivered. “Thanks Isabella,” Cole murmured when she pulled the jacket over him. She wrapped him in a hug to keep him as warm as possible in the rain. Isabella struggled with her predatory senses that were telling her to finish off the wounded, but she knew it was futile to resist. She had to hope Victoria would come in time. She gave up.3

“The blood loss is making it difficult to move isn’t it?” she said, her face concealed by the dark. “I can move… if I need to,” he said, watching her closely. “You should get away from me,” she murmured, although she didn’t let go of him. Isabella looked up and Cole’s eyes widened. “I don’t think an hold back much longer,” she said, much louder. 4

Isabella’s eyes were silver; the color of a hungry vampire’s eyes, and the resistance was leaving them. Cole tried to sit up but didn’t make it halfway before the pain overtook him and he fell flat on his back again, his eyes clenched closed from the effort. The wind blew harder and Cole opened his eyes. His gaze wandered to Isabella. The wind changed direction. Isabella’s long, silver hair now shone a blackish-blue color. There were two blue lines on the right side of her neck and two more on her left cheek. Her eyes were silver. “Isabella, resist your blood lust. Please resist. I can’t fight without putting you in danger,” Cole begged desperately. Isabella growled, her face coming closer and closer to his. 5

“Isabella, try,” Cole murmured. Isabella paused, looking at him with an intensity that seemed to burn him. She pulled at the string around her neck. It cut her neck on one side, making blood drip down her neck. “What if I don’t want to try,” she whispered, coming much closer to him. Cole took in the scent of her blood. “You really shouldn’t do that,” Cole said. She put a finger to the cut, getting a few drops on her finger, put it to her mouth. “Why shouldn’t I?” she whispered in his ear. She kissed his neck and Cole stiffened. Her teeth pierced his skin. He let her stay there at first, taking his blood, but then he felt as if he was draining away. “Isabella…” he gasped. She pulled away to look him in the face. 6

His ice blue eyes pierced her silver ones. “What? Too much?” she asked. He nodded slightly. She smiled, showing her teeth. “Just how I want it,” Isabella commented. She kissed him, both of their blood getting into his mouth. He growled and pushed Isabella away, sitting up and leaning forward. 7

“It’s dangerous enough when you are like this but to tempt me with our blood mixed together… You must have a death wish,” he said. Cole pinned Isabella to the wet grass, the rain falling on his back. “I thought you couldn’t move,” she said matter-of-factly. Cole grinned and winced. “I couldn’t,” he replied. Isabella tried to shove him off, tried to get up, and was surprised to find that Cole was much stronger than she was. “Get off,” she snarled. Cole leaned closer to Isabella, their lips almost touching. “I distinctly remember telling myself not to do this but, as you can see, it is a little too late,” he muttered. “You really should have let me go,” Isabella said, smirking. She snapped at his neck, only to find empty air. He wasn’t on top of her anymore.8

She also wasn’t pleased to feel a blade against her neck. The blade sizzled and burned her skin. “You couldn’t let me have my own fun could you,” Isabella said. Rayne sighed, keeping the blade close to Isabella’s pale skin. “No,” she replied. The rain stopped.9

Victoria threw Cole to the ground and pushed her arm under his chin. “Why did you break the strings?” she asked. He just glared at her defiantly. “Fine,” she murmured. Isabella heard a gasp and struggled to see Cole. The blade dug into her skin and burned it again. Cole was on the ground; Victoria had knocked him out. Isabella knew he would not be out for long. “He won’t be happy when he wakes up,” Isabella murmured. Victoria turned to face Isabella, motioning to Rayne to let Isabella go. Isabella waited to be able to attack but as soon as the pressure on her neck lifted Rayne was gone. 10

Victoria noted the blood on Isabella’s face and neck. Isabella licked her fingers like a contented wolf licks her paws after a hunt. Victoria picked up Kagehishu from the spot where Isabella had thrown it. “Rayne knock her out,” Victoria said. “You’ll regret it,” Isabella growled in warning. Something hit Isabella in the back of her neck. She fell to the ground, out cold. Victoria put Kagehishu back in its sheath on Isabella’s hip. Victoria sighed. “No wonder you named it ‘shadow dagger’… it always disappears with the shadows,” she muttered unhappily. She laid Isabella by Cole. “Rayne, can you get me some water from the lake,” Victoria requested.11

Rayne left silently. Victoria knelt by Isabella and pushed the black strands of hair from Isabella’s face. She traced the blue lines along Isabella’s neck. They started to fade, as did the black in Isabella’s hair, gradually as Victoria fixed the wounds on Isabella’s arms. “These are probably from straining against the string I tied around her wrists,” Victoria muttered to herself. The burn marks from Rayne’s athame, Hitanken, meaning “fire dagger”, faded away after Victoria poured some of the lake water on them, but the cut from the string that had been around her neck required a little bit of healing on Victoria’s part. 12

Something wasn’t right with Isabella, she was shaking slightly and she looked paler than normal. She was already her normal self so that couldn’t be the problem. She turned to Cole. “Rayne, stay with Isabella please,” she murmured. “Why?” Rayne said sounding surprised. “Because if she decides to take that dagger off then she could change back into a demon. The dagger is the only thing keeping her half-human, now that her necklace is nowhere to be found,” Victoria replied. 13

She hesitated before she started to dress the bite wound on Cole’s neck. As she started to reach for the bandages she caught the scent of his blood and drew back. Cameron came through the trees and knelt next to Victoria. “So what happened here?” he asked, curious. “What does it look like?” she snapped. “Where’s Naomi?” 14

“Checking out the last place Yumiko was seen.” 15

Victoria nodded. “Cole’s blood has poison in it. No, actually it had poison in it. Isabella took most of it from him.” Cameron didn’t look surprised but he did groan. “Oh, great! Cole is going to kill himself over this. He will be furious.” Victoria started to put the bandages on as Cameron said this. “I’ll be furious about what?” Cole asked, his eyes opening slowly. Victoria tried to back away but Cole grabbed her arm, pulling her back to him. “Nothing,” Victoria hissed. “What am I furious about Cameron?” Cole said more forcefully. He stared Victoria down. He slowly stood, bringing Victoria with him. 16

Cole’s stone cold glare moved to Cameron. “I’m sorry Tori, but he has the right to know, she is his…” Cameron said. “Don’t say that,” Victoria yelled. “Isabella does not love him! She never will!” Cole had a grim smile on his face. “Cole please don’t kill everyone in the area or anything like that but… when Isabella bit you, she… took the poison in your blood… and now…” Cameron trailed off. Cole’s eyes widened as he spun around to look at Isabella. She looked pale and she was barely breathing. Cole’s grip on Victoria’s arm slackened and she yanked it from his hand. He didn’t pay attention. Rayne now stood with Cameron and Victoria, watching Cole. 17

He sank back to the ground, a look of shock on his face as he tried to comprehend the damage he had done. “She’s awake?” Victoria murmured to Rayne. Rayne gave a small nod. Cole’s head jerked up. His eyes focused on Isabella’s still figure.